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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 116 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: sharp · fine · face · kid · straw · court · ruler · track

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. face — to confront
  3. kid — to tease
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. court — of law
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. track — a song
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. face — part of the head
  12. track — to keep track
  13. sharp — clever
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. face — to point toward
  16. fine — all right
  17. court — for sport
  18. court — of a king
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. track — a path
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. kid — child

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