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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. wind — moving air
  3. cue — a hint
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. roll — a list
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. chip — for betting
  8. cue — for pool
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. cue — a signal
  13. mug — a face
  14. land — ground
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. land — a country
  17. land — to come down
  18. chip — to eat
  19. wind — moving air
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. roll — a cake
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. mug — to rob
  24. bat — the animal

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