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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. capital — money
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the sport
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. cold — an illness
  7. tear — to rip
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. cue — for pool
  11. date — the fruit
  12. cold — not warm
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. cue — a signal
  16. dip — to sink
  17. capital — a city
  18. rock — music
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. rock — a stone
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. tear — from crying
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. tear — from crying

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