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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. board — to get on
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. land — to come down
  6. cue — a hint
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. foot — a measure
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. board — a committee
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. drill — army training
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — happy
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. drill — a practice
  18. wax — to grow
  19. land — a country
  20. land — ground
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. rule — government
  23. drill — the tool
  24. cue — for pool

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