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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. cue — a signal
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cue — a hint
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. squash — the sport
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. rock — a stone
  16. cue — for pool
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. squash — to crush

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