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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. court — of a king
  6. cue — a signal
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. cue — for pool
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. game — a match
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — to come from
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. squash — to crush
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. game — wild animals
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. squash — the sport
  20. mine — for digging
  21. court — for sport
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. court — of law
  24. game — a kind of play

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