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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. face — to point toward
  3. last — to go on
  4. season — in sport
  5. cue — a signal
  6. key — the most important part
  7. last — final
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. hand — help
  11. face — part of the head
  12. field — for sport
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cue — for pool
  15. last — finally
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — of the year
  19. key — in music
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. face — to confront
  23. key — for a lock
  24. hand — in cards

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