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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. present — the time now
  3. face — to point toward
  4. spell — magic
  5. face — to confront
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. content — the amount
  8. fork — in a road
  9. face — part of the head
  10. court — of a king
  11. content — happy
  12. tube — the underground
  13. spell — letters
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. court — of law
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. present — there
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. present — a gift
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — a container
  24. spell — a short time

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