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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: tear · face · scale · season · game · rash · dip · craft

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. face — to point toward
  4. game — a match
  5. rash — a series
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. tear — from crying
  8. game — wild animals
  9. face — to confront
  10. rash — hasty
  11. dip — to sink
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. season — of the year
  14. face — part of the head
  15. craft — boats
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. craft — a skill
  19. tear — from crying
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. scale — in music
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. season — in sport
  24. tear — to rip

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