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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: lie · face · bat · spring · ground · last · stand · court

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. last — to go on
  5. stand — to bear
  6. last — final
  7. court — of a king
  8. spring — the season
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. ground — the earth
  11. face — part of the head
  12. bat — the animal
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — to confront
  16. lie — to recline
  17. court — for sport
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — crushed
  20. court — of law
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — a coil
  23. last — finally
  24. bat — for baseball

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