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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. tear — to rip
  7. face — part of the head
  8. hand — in cards
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. face — to point toward
  12. tear — from crying
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. tear — from crying
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. hand — help
  18. plane — a tool
  19. ball — a dance
  20. court — for sport
  21. face — to confront
  22. court — of a king
  23. ball — a great time
  24. hand — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com