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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. rule — a law
  3. court — of law
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. chest — of your body
  7. plane — a tool
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. chest — of your body
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — to visit
  13. face — part of the head
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. face — to confront
  16. court — of a king
  17. chest — a box
  18. rule — government
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. face — to point toward
  23. pop — soda
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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