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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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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 · pit · game · wind · racket · rash · chip · face

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. wind — moving air
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. pit — in a race
  7. wind — moving air
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. game — a match
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. chip — for betting
  13. chip — to eat
  14. snap — to click
  15. face — to confront
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. pit — a hole
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. game — wild animals
  21. rash — hasty
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — on the skin

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