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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: bear · game · last · can · face · pit · row · hand

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. game — wild animals
  3. last — to go on
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. pit — a hole
  7. can — a tin
  8. row — a line
  9. bear — the animal
  10. row — to paddle
  11. face — part of the head
  12. pit — in a race
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. last — final
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. face — to point toward
  18. hand — help
  19. can — a tin
  20. can — to be able to
  21. face — to confront
  22. last — finally
  23. game — a match
  24. bear — the animal

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