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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. cue — a signal
  3. cap — of ice
  4. spell — a short time
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. shower — to wash
  7. cue — for pool
  8. spell — magic
  9. cap — a hat
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. shower — rain
  13. cap — a lid
  14. degree — an amount
  15. spell — letters
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — from a university
  18. pitcher — a jug

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