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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 120 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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. spell — letters
  4. spell — a short time
  5. tear — from crying
  6. game — wild animals
  7. stand — to bear
  8. plane — a tool
  9. court — for sport
  10. last — to go on
  11. spell — magic
  12. tear — from crying
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. last — finally
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. last — final
  18. game — a match
  19. tear — to rip
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. court — of a king
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. stand — on your feet

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