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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: straw · face · stand · fan · racket · snap · bowl · ball

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. ball — a great time
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. ball — a dance
  8. face — to point toward
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. stand — to bear
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. face — part of the head
  20. face — to confront
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. fan — a supporter

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