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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'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. season — in sport
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. bat — the animal
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. content — happy
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. cue — for pool
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spell — letters
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. pit — a hole
  13. cue — a signal
  14. foot — a measure
  15. pit — in a race
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. content — the amount
  21. spell — magic
  22. season — of the year
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. season — to add flavour

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