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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. cue — a signal
  4. cap — a hat
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. squash — to crush
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. drill — the tool
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. game — a match
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cold — an illness
  16. squash — the sport
  17. cap — of ice
  18. drill — army training
  19. game — wild animals
  20. cap — a lid
  21. drill — a practice
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. cue — for pool
  24. racket — for tennis

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