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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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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: face · dip · land · snap · content · wave · pit · club

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. pit — a hole
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. club — for dancing
  6. land — a country
  7. face — part of the head
  8. club — for golf
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. club — a group
  12. land — ground
  13. face — to point toward
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. snap — to click
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. face — to confront
  19. pit — in a race
  20. land — to come down
  21. content — happy
  22. dip — to sink
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. wave — of the sea

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