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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. scale — in music
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. swing — in golf
  5. bark — to shout
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. pound — a weight
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. ground — the earth
  10. cue — for pool
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — music
  13. ground — crushed
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. scale — size or range
  17. cue — a hint
  18. ground — a position

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