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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. cold — not warm
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. tube — a container
  5. pop — soda
  6. cue — for pool
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. saw — the tool
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. pop — to visit
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. saw — the tool
  15. ground — a position
  16. tube — the underground
  17. cold — an illness
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. ground — crushed
  21. pop — music
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cue — a hint
  24. ground — the earth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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