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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. pop — soda
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cue — a signal
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. cue — a hint
  9. spell — letters
  10. can — a tin
  11. wound — an injury
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — a short time
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — government
  16. pop — music
  17. can — to be able to
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cue — for pool
  21. pop — to visit
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. can — a tin
  24. wound — an injury

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