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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cap — a lid
  3. rest — a break
  4. cue — a signal
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. rash — hasty
  7. cap — of ice
  8. fine — high quality
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. mark — a trace
  11. clip — to cut
  12. rest — what's left
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rash — a series
  15. rest — what's left
  16. mark — a grade
  17. cue — a hint
  18. cue — for pool
  19. clip — for paper
  20. fine — all right
  21. cap — a hat
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. clip — a video

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