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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 120 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cue — for pool
  4. spring — of water
  5. cell — in biology
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. net — in sport
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. content — the amount
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. content — happy
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. spring — a coil
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. net — for catching
  19. spring — the season
  20. cue — a hint
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. cue — a signal
  24. net — after costs

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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