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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. pass — a permit
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. drill — army training
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. rock — music
  7. kid — child
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. cue — for pool
  11. kid — to tease
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. rock — a stone
  15. drill — a practice
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. shower — to wash
  18. cue — a signal
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. drill — the tool
  22. fork — in a road
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. pitch — completely

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