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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. cold — not warm
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. cue — for pool
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. charge — a price
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — a hint
  10. swing — to play on
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — magic
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. charge — electricity
  15. mate — a partner
  16. perch — the fish
  17. swing — in golf
  18. mate — a friend
  19. charge — in control
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. swing — music
  23. mate — to breed
  24. spell — letters

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