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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. shower — to wash
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. mark — a grade
  6. kid — child
  7. cue — a signal
  8. kick — in football
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cue — a hint
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. mark — a trace
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. clip — a video
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — for paper
  20. deal — to handle
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. cold — not warm
  23. kid — to tease
  24. shower — rain

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