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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: ground · mine · pit · racket · stand · sharp · hand · face

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. face — part of the head
  7. face — to confront
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. ground — the earth
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. ground — crushed
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — for digging
  16. pit — a hole
  17. pit — in a race
  18. hand — help
  19. hand — in cards
  20. ground — a position
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. face — to point toward
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. stand — to bear

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