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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: chair · face · mate · lean · court · band · deal · mine

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. face — to point toward
  3. lean — to bend
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — to breed
  10. band — a ring
  11. lean — thin
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. face — to confront
  15. face — part of the head
  16. court — of a king
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. mate — a partner
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. mine — for digging
  23. deal — to handle
  24. band — a music group

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