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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: face · march · game · wake · vault · spell · season · bark

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — a trail
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. bark — to shout
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. spell — magic
  10. season — of the year
  11. face — part of the head
  12. vault — a safe
  13. face — to confront
  14. season — in sport
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. spell — letters
  19. game — a match
  20. face — to point toward
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. march — the month
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. spell — a short time

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