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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 · can · bat · court · saw · hand · sharp · squash

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. face — part of the head
  4. can — a tin
  5. face — to point toward
  6. can — to be able to
  7. squash — the sport
  8. face — to confront
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — in cards
  14. sharp — clever
  15. saw — the tool
  16. court — of law
  17. can — a tin
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. court — for sport
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. court — of a king
  24. squash — to crush

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