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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 116 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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cue — for pool
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cue — a signal
  8. net — for catching
  9. degree — temperature
  10. chip — for betting
  11. shower — rain
  12. shower — to wash
  13. cue — a hint
  14. net — in sport
  15. degree — an amount
  16. chip — to eat
  17. cell — a phone
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. degree — from a university
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. cold — an illness
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. net — after costs

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