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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 120 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 · fine · face · wind · court · temple · bark · deal

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. face — to confront
  3. deal — to handle
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. fine — high quality
  6. court — of law
  7. fine — all right
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bark — to shout
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. face — part of the head
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. court — of a king
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. tube — the underground
  22. face — to point toward
  23. tube — a container
  24. deal — a big deal

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