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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. key — for a lock
  3. land — a country
  4. key — the most important part
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. swing — to play on
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. swing — in golf
  10. swing — music
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. cold — an illness
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. mine — for digging
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cue — a signal
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. cold — not warm
  21. key — in music
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — ground

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