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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 · bat · court · spring · mate · ruler · mug · staff

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. mug — a face
  3. mug — to rob
  4. court — for sport
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — of law
  7. face — to confront
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. spring — the season
  11. mate — to breed
  12. spring — of water
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. staff — employees
  16. face — to point toward
  17. mate — a partner
  18. spring — a coil
  19. mate — a friend
  20. face — part of the head
  21. staff — a stick
  22. bat — the animal
  23. mug — a cup
  24. ruler — for measuring

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