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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 120 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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. court — for sport
  4. rock — music
  5. cold — not warm
  6. bore — to tire
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. court — of law
  9. rock — a stone
  10. bat — the animal
  11. sharp — clever
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mate — to breed
  14. cue — a signal
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. court — of a king
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. cold — an illness
  19. mate — a friend
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. cue — a hint
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. mate — a partner

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