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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
468
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: rule · face · snap · ball · game · spell · bass · wind

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. ball — a dance
  3. spell — a short time
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. face — to point toward
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. face — part of the head
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. spell — letters
  11. ball — a great time
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. spell — magic
  14. bass — low music
  15. bass — the fish
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. game — wild animals
  18. wind — moving air
  19. game — a match
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — a law
  22. wind — moving air
  23. face — to confront
  24. snap — to click

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