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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cue — for pool
  5. current — electric
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. last — to go on
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cold — an illness
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. current — of water
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. current — happening now
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. pound — a weight
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. last — finally
  22. plane — a tool
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. cue — a signal

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