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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. ball — a dance
  3. cue — a signal
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. scale — in music
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. scale — size or range
  10. cell — a phone
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. last — to go on
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. cue — for pool
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. last — final
  20. cue — a hint
  21. cell — in biology
  22. mine — for digging
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. last — finally

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