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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: hand · wake · face · court · file · mug · deal · kid

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of law
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. file — a tool
  5. kid — child
  6. mug — a face
  7. face — part of the head
  8. court — of a king
  9. face — to point toward
  10. mug — a cup
  11. face — to confront
  12. kid — to tease
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wake — a trail
  17. hand — help
  18. deal — to handle
  19. hand — in cards
  20. file — a document
  21. mug — to rob
  22. file — a line of people
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. wake — before a funeral

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