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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 120 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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. content — happy
  6. content — the amount
  7. cap — a lid
  8. chest — of your body
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cue — a signal
  11. mate — to breed
  12. cap — a hat
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. rush — hurry
  16. capital — a city
  17. mate — a friend
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. cue — a hint
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — in sport
  22. capital — money
  23. mate — a partner
  24. net — for catching

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