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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wake — a trail
  4. spring — of water
  5. cue — a hint
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. spring — a coil
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. spring — the season
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fork — in a road
  13. craft — boats
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. cue — for pool
  20. plane — a tool
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. craft — a skill

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