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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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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 · bay · swing · racket · wax · court · lash · last

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. swing — in golf
  3. court — for sport
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. face — to confront
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. court — of law
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. wax — to grow
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. face — part of the head
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. court — of a king
  18. last — final
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. swing — music
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. swing — to play on

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