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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. snap — to click
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. cue — a hint
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. wound — an injury
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. vault — a safe
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. cue — for pool
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. charge — in control
  14. cue — a signal
  15. wound — an injury
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. sharp — clever
  20. charge — electricity
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. charge — a price
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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