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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. root — of a word
  3. root — of a plant
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. cue — a hint
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. season — in sport
  8. cold — an illness
  9. ball — a dance
  10. face — part of the head
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. cold — not warm
  13. root — the cause
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. ball — a great time
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. face — to confront
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. season — of the year
  22. cue — for pool
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. face — to point toward

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