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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: last · cue · bound · court · sharp · fall · fork · face

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. last — to go on
  3. court — for sport
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bound — obliged
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. cue — a signal
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. fall — to drop
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. bound — tied together
  12. face — to confront
  13. court — of law
  14. last — final
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. cue — a hint
  17. fall — to drop
  18. cue — for pool
  19. face — part of the head
  20. sharp — clever
  21. fork — in a road
  22. fall — the season
  23. court — of a king
  24. last — finally

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