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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. mark — a grade
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. march — the month
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — not warm
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. cue — a hint
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. march — the month
  13. mark — a trace
  14. march — music
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. fine — all right
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. cue — a signal
  22. clip — to cut
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cue — for pool

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