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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cue — a signal
  3. net — after costs
  4. cell — in biology
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cap — a lid
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ground — crushed
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cap — of ice
  11. net — in sport
  12. club — for golf
  13. club — for dancing
  14. cue — for pool
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. scale — in music
  17. ground — a position
  18. cue — a hint
  19. club — a group
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. net — for catching
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. scale — size or range

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