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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 116 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: tube · mark · sharp · swing · land · court · bear · face

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. land — to come down
  3. swing — to play on
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. court — for sport
  7. bear — the animal
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bear — the animal
  10. sharp — clever
  11. swing — music
  12. face — to point toward
  13. face — to confront
  14. court — of a king
  15. swing — in golf
  16. court — of law
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. land — ground
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. tube — a container
  21. land — a country
  22. mark — a trace
  23. mark — a grade
  24. tube — the underground

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