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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. sharp — clever
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. ground — the earth
  5. spring — a coil
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — crushed
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. court — for sport
  10. track — a song
  11. track — to keep track
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. spring — the season
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. face — to confront
  16. court — of law
  17. face — to point toward
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. spring — of water
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. vault — a safe
  23. court — of a king
  24. track — a path

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