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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: dip · game · foot · clip · face · suit · racket · hand

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. dip — to sink
  3. foot — a measure
  4. clip — a video
  5. face — to confront
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. clip — for paper
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. hand — help
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — clothes
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. game — wild animals
  18. face — to point toward
  19. hand — in cards
  20. clip — to cut
  21. game — a match
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. face — part of the head

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