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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  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. pitch — a sales talk
  2. cue — for pool
  3. band — a music group
  4. chip — to eat
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. squash — the sport
  8. cue — a signal
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. cue — a hint
  12. squash — to crush
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. chip — for betting
  18. pitch — completely
  19. sharp — clever
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — to wash
  22. wind — moving air
  23. band — a ring
  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