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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. track — a song
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — a law
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stock — shares
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. clip — a video
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. track — to keep track
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. stock — goods
  16. track — a path
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. cue — for pool
  20. clip — for paper
  21. cue — a hint
  22. clip — to cut
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. racket — for tennis

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