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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: pound · face · key · chest · club · court · date · lie

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  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. key — for a lock
  3. chest — of your body
  4. face — to point toward
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. key — in music
  7. court — of law
  8. chest — of your body
  9. club — for dancing
  10. court — of a king
  11. face — to confront
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. face — part of the head
  16. pound — a weight
  17. key — the most important part
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. club — for golf
  20. club — a group
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. date — the fruit
  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