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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bore · craft · wound · chair · race · face · court · kid

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. face — part of the head
  3. court — of a king
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. court — of law
  7. wound — an injury
  8. chair — a leader
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. craft — a skill
  11. race — the arms race
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. kid — child
  15. race — humankind
  16. face — to confront
  17. craft — boats
  18. race — a contest
  19. court — for sport
  20. bore — to tire
  21. bore — to drill
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. kid — to tease

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