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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: stock · suit · land · stand · court · swing · face · tear

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. court — of a king
  3. suit — clothes
  4. tear — to rip
  5. face — to confront
  6. land — ground
  7. face — to point toward
  8. tear — from crying
  9. land — a country
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stand — to bear
  13. court — of law
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. land — to come down
  16. swing — in golf
  17. face — part of the head
  18. court — for sport
  19. tear — from crying
  20. swing — music
  21. suit — in cards
  22. stock — goods
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. swing — to play on

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