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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. season — in sport
  3. mate — a partner
  4. season — of the year
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. content — happy
  9. hand — in cards
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. cue — for pool
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. mate — a friend
  15. hand — help
  16. content — the amount
  17. cue — a signal
  18. mate — to breed

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