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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: lean · cell · wave · face · pit · game · hand · dip

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. game — wild animals
  3. pit — a hole
  4. hand — help
  5. face — part of the head
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. lean — to bend
  9. hand — in cards
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. game — a match
  14. face — to point toward
  15. lean — thin
  16. pit — in a race
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. face — to confront
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in biology
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. cell — in a prison

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