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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. snap — to click
  3. stand — to bear
  4. file — a document
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. file — a tool
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. cue — a signal
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. squash — to crush
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. march — music
  13. bound — certain
  14. march — the month
  15. cue — for pool
  16. squash — the sport
  17. bound — obliged
  18. file — a line of people
  19. bound — tied together
  20. drill — the tool
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — army training
  24. march — the month

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