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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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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: key · date · bowl · snap · pitcher · root · club · face

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  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. pitcher — a jug
  2. root — of a word
  3. club — a group
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — the most important part
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. snap — to click
  8. face — to point toward
  9. club — for golf
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. face — part of the head
  13. club — for dancing
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. key — in music
  17. date — the fruit
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. root — of a plant
  21. root — the cause
  22. face — to confront
  23. bowl — to roll
  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