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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mark — a trace
  6. cue — for pool
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. cue — a hint
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. pass — a permit
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. bark — to shout
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. mine — for digging
  17. mark — a grade
  18. mine — an explosive

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