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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a tool
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bear — the animal
  9. cue — for pool
  10. file — a document
  11. land — ground
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to click
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. capital — a city
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bear — the animal
  18. land — a country
  19. capital — money
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. land — to come down
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. fall — to drop
  24. cue — a signal

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