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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. mate — a friend
  3. rash — hasty
  4. mug — to rob
  5. mate — a partner
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. cue — for pool
  11. mug — a cup
  12. mug — a face
  13. band — a ring
  14. cap — a lid
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. cap — a hat
  17. cue — a hint
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. cap — of ice
  20. rash — a series
  21. last — final
  22. last — to go on
  23. mate — to breed
  24. last — finally

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