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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: snap · date · degree · face · drill · charge · coach · game

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. face — part of the head
  3. game — a match
  4. game — wild animals
  5. snap — to click
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — a practice
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. drill — the tool
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. charge — in control
  13. charge — electricity
  14. degree — an amount
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. degree — temperature
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. face — to confront
  20. date — the fruit
  21. degree — from a university
  22. charge — a price
  23. face — to point toward
  24. coach — a trainer

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