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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: pit · court · fine · sharp · charge · race · snap · face

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. charge — electricity
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. fine — high quality
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. charge — a price
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. race — a contest
  10. face — to confront
  11. pit — a hole
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — for sport
  15. fine — all right
  16. charge — in control
  17. face — to point toward
  18. race — the arms race
  19. snap — to click
  20. sharp — clever
  21. court — of law
  22. race — humankind
  23. face — part of the head
  24. pit — in a race

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