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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: can · roll · face · foot · date · court · game · tube

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. date — the fruit
  4. can — a tin
  5. game — wild animals
  6. face — to confront
  7. can — to be able to
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. tube — the underground
  10. face — part of the head
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. roll — a list
  13. roll — a cake
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. court — of a king
  16. tube — a container
  17. face — to point toward
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. court — of law
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. can — a tin
  22. game — a match
  23. foot — a measure
  24. court — for sport

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