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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: roll · cue · game · land · mark · face · rash · swing

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a match
  4. roll — a cake
  5. mark — a grade
  6. face — part of the head
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. swing — music
  9. land — to come down
  10. rash — a series
  11. rash — hasty
  12. roll — a list
  13. mark — a trace
  14. swing — in golf
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cue — for pool
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. land — a country
  19. cue — a signal
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. face — to confront
  22. face — to point toward
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. swing — to play on

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