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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. spring — of water
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — child
  8. spring — a coil
  9. cue — a signal
  10. cap — a hat
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. cap — of ice
  13. pitch — completely
  14. shower — rain
  15. cap — a lid
  16. tube — the underground
  17. tube — a container
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. shower — to wash
  20. spring — the season
  21. cue — a hint
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. cue — for pool
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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