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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 116 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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. face — part of the head
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. face — to confront
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. club — for golf
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. fall — to drop
  12. club — a group
  13. club — for dancing
  14. game — a match
  15. dip — to sink
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — the fish
  18. hand — help
  19. fall — to drop
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. face — to point toward
  22. hand — in cards
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. fall — the season

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