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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. chest — of your body
  3. land — to come down
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. land — ground
  6. key — the most important part
  7. chest — of your body
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. season — of the year
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. band — a ring
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. stand — to bear
  14. chest — a box
  15. key — for a lock
  16. band — a music group
  17. land — a country
  18. season — in sport
  19. cue — a signal
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. key — in music
  23. cue — a hint
  24. stand — on your feet

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