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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: snap · game · bay · firm · track · date · roll · pitcher

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. roll — a cake
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. track — a song
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. game — a match
  11. track — a path
  12. game — wild animals
  13. firm — decided
  14. roll — a list
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. firm — a company
  18. firm — steady
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. track — to keep track
  22. date — the fruit
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. date — on the calendar

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