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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 · fan · court · shower · mug · plane · bound · fall

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. mug — a cup
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bound — obliged
  5. court — for sport
  6. bound — tied together
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bound — certain
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. court — of a king
  13. shower — rain
  14. face — part of the head
  15. mug — to rob
  16. court — of law
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fall — to drop
  19. face — to point toward
  20. fall — the season
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. shower — to wash
  23. mug — a face
  24. plane — a tool

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