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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. clip — to cut
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cue — a hint
  7. squash — to crush
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. spring — of water
  10. mark — a grade
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — to drop
  13. spring — the season
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bat — the animal
  16. mark — a trace
  17. deal — to handle
  18. clip — a video
  19. cue — for pool
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. spring — a coil
  22. squash — the sport
  23. fall — the season
  24. squash — the vegetable

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