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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cue — for pool
  5. wake — a trail
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. clip — to cut
  9. chair — a leader
  10. fall — to drop
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fall — the season
  13. clip — for paper
  14. clip — a video
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. fork — in a road
  17. cue — a hint
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. cap — a hat
  23. perch — the fish
  24. fall — to drop

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