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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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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: pit · lean · wave · bark · chest · deal · lie · court

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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. lie — an untruth
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pit — a hole
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. lean — thin
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. lie — to recline
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. court — of a king
  16. lean — to bend
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. deal — to handle
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bark — to shout
  21. chest — of your body
  22. pit — in a race
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. chest — a box

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