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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. cue — a signal
  3. ball — a dance
  4. current — happening now
  5. current — electric
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bass — the fish
  9. rush — hurry
  10. wake — a trail
  11. bass — low music
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. cue — for pool
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. current — of water
  20. ball — a great time
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. bat — for baseball
  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