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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. wake — a trail
  3. face — part of the head
  4. land — to come down
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. face — to point toward
  7. land — a country
  8. club — for dancing
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. file — a document
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. club — for golf
  14. file — a line of people
  15. hand — help
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. land — ground
  18. file — a tool
  19. snap — to click
  20. craft — a skill
  21. face — to confront
  22. craft — boats
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. club — a 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