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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. rash — a series
  5. pound — a weight
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. game — wild animals
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. face — to point toward
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. face — part of the head
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. rash — hasty
  15. snap — to click
  16. face — to confront
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. dip — to sink
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. game — a kind of play

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