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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 124 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. cue — a signal
  3. land — ground
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. net — in sport
  7. spring — the season
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — after costs
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. cue — for pool
  13. ball — a great time
  14. kid — to tease
  15. cue — a hint
  16. ball — a dance
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. land — a country
  19. kid — child
  20. firm — a company
  21. land — to come down
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. firm — steady

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