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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: last · face · kid · rule · clip · fan · court · stand

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. rule — a law
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. last — final
  6. face — to point toward
  7. kid — to tease
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. stand — to bear
  10. court — of law
  11. kid — child
  12. clip — for paper
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. last — to go on
  16. face — to confront
  17. court — of a king
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. court — for sport
  21. clip — a video
  22. face — part of the head
  23. clip — to cut
  24. rule — government

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