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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. rule — government
  3. cue — a hint
  4. row — to paddle
  5. court — of a king
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. face — to point toward
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. face — part of the head
  11. rule — a law
  12. face — to confront
  13. cue — a signal
  14. row — a line
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. wound — an injury
  17. cue — for pool
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. wound — an injury
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. court — of law
  24. kick — in football

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