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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. ball — a great time
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. race — a contest
  5. row — a line
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. cue — a signal
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. band — a ring
  11. row — to paddle
  12. ball — a dance
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. race — humankind
  15. race — the arms race
  16. rush — hurry
  17. cue — for pool
  18. content — the amount
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. content — happy
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — of the year
  24. band — a music group

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