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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. snap — to click
  3. bat — the animal
  4. spell — letters
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. spell — a short time
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. rest — a break
  9. cue — a signal
  10. spell — magic
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bass — low music
  15. lean — to bend
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. cue — a hint
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. tube — the underground
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. lean — thin
  24. tube — a container

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