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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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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. kid — to tease
  4. pit — a hole
  5. current — of water
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. race — the arms race
  9. kid — child
  10. race — humankind
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pit — in a race
  13. cue — for pool
  14. race — a contest
  15. cue — a hint
  16. current — happening now
  17. current — electric
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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