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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. face — to confront
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. stock — goods
  5. track — a path
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a song
  9. last — finally
  10. face — to point toward
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. game — wild animals
  13. last — final
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. face — part of the head
  16. snap — to click
  17. hand — help
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. stock — shares
  20. last — to go on
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. hand — in cards
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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