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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: snap · bear · face · game · date · leaves

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. snap — to click
  5. game — wild animals
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. face — to confront
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. face — part of the head
  12. bear — the animal
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. date — the fruit
  15. bear — the animal
  16. game — a match
  17. face — to point toward
  18. date — on the calendar

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