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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. cold — an illness
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chip — to eat
  7. chip — for betting
  8. cue — a signal
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. cold — not warm
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bulb — for light
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. sharp — clever
  16. cue — a hint
  17. squash — the sport
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. cue — for pool
  20. bulb — for light
  21. squash — to crush
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. cold — the Cold War

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