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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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Word bank
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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: face · bound · squash · hand · court · rash · fork · leaves

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. hand — help
  4. bound — certain
  5. court — for sport
  6. rash — a series
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. squash — to crush
  9. hand — in cards
  10. bound — tied together
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to confront
  15. bound — obliged
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. court — of a king
  19. court — of law
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. rash — hasty
  22. squash — the sport
  23. fork — in a road
  24. face — to point toward

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