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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. cue — a hint
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. cap — a lid
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. foot — a measure
  8. cue — a signal
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. hand — help
  11. pop — music
  12. cue — for pool
  13. hand — in cards
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — humankind
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. race — a contest
  21. pop — soda
  22. pop — to visit
  23. cap — a hat
  24. cap — of ice

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