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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. clip — for paper
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. club — for golf
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. rock — music
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — to cut
  12. cue — a hint
  13. content — the amount
  14. club — for dancing
  15. craft — a skill
  16. content — happy
  17. rule — a law
  18. craft — boats
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. club — a group
  22. rock — a stone
  23. cue — for pool
  24. rule — government

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