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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. pop — to visit
  3. cue — a hint
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. cue — for pool
  6. cue — a signal
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. craft — boats
  10. scale — size or range
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. current — happening now
  14. pop — music
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. capital — a city
  17. craft — a skill
  18. current — electric
  19. current — of water
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — the animal
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. scale — in music

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