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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. kid — to tease
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. saw — the tool
  5. court — of a king
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. face — to point toward
  8. sharp — clever
  9. face — to confront
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. court — of law
  14. kid — child
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. court — for sport
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. rush — hurry
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. cold — an illness
  23. face — part of the head
  24. cold — not warm

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