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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. degree — from a university
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. game — a match
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — low music
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cue — for pool
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cue — a signal
  12. bass — the fish
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — temperature
  18. game — wild animals

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