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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 120 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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. vault — a safe
  3. cue — a hint
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. net — in sport
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wake — a trail
  9. bear — the animal
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. bore — to tire
  16. cue — for pool
  17. net — for catching
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. net — after costs
  21. bore — to drill
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bore — gave birth

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