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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: mate · content · court · snap · rule · face · tear · net

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. tear — to rip
  3. net — for catching
  4. court — for sport
  5. face — to confront
  6. content — the amount
  7. mate — to breed
  8. rule — government
  9. net — after costs
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. tear — from crying
  12. court — of law
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. net — in sport
  15. court — of a king
  16. content — happy
  17. face — part of the head
  18. mate — a friend
  19. snap — to click
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. tear — from crying
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. face — to point toward
  24. mate — a partner

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