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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. cue — a hint
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a song
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. pitch — completely
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. content — happy
  14. content — the amount
  15. game — a match
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. cue — for pool
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. cue — a signal
  20. track — a path
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. game — wild animals
  24. rule — government

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