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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 120 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: face · shower · game · bank · craft · racket · drill · pop

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. game — a match
  3. craft — boats
  4. drill — army training
  5. drill — a practice
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. drill — the tool
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. bank — for money
  11. pop — to visit
  12. shower — rain
  13. pop — soda
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bank — for money
  17. craft — a skill
  18. bank — of a river
  19. pop — music
  20. shower — to wash
  21. face — to point toward
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. game — wild animals
  24. racket — for tennis

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