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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: arm · court · swing · mate · mark · clip · face · leaves

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. face — to point toward
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. swing — in golf
  8. clip — to cut
  9. face — part of the head
  10. court — for sport
  11. mark — a grade
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. mark — a trace
  14. swing — music
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. face — to confront
  19. court — of a king
  20. mate — a partner
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. court — of law
  24. swing — to play on

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