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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. cue — a hint
  4. pop — to visit
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — the earth
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. game — wild animals
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. foot — a measure
  13. cell — a phone
  14. pop — soda
  15. wake — a trail
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cue — for pool
  18. pop — music
  19. perch — the fish
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. cell — in biology
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. game — a match
  24. cue — a signal

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