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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. present — a gift
  3. deal — to handle
  4. present — there
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. fork — in a road
  8. perch — the fish
  9. race — the arms race
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. race — humankind
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. capital — money
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. cue — a signal
  19. race — a contest
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. present — the time now
  24. cue — for pool

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