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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. cue — for pool
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. pass — a permit
  6. face — to confront
  7. season — in sport
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. face — part of the head
  10. season — of the year
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. capital — money
  14. face — to point toward
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. bat — the animal
  18. capital — a city
  19. rest — what's left
  20. cue — a signal
  21. mug — a face
  22. mug — to rob
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. mug — a cup

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