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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. chest — of your body
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. craft — a skill
  5. chest — of your body
  6. capital — money
  7. club — a group
  8. club — for dancing
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. press — a publisher
  11. capital — a city
  12. cue — a hint
  13. press — newspapers
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. squash — the sport
  17. press — to push
  18. cue — for pool
  19. squash — to crush
  20. craft — boats
  21. club — for golf
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. chest — a box
  24. craft — a handicraft

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