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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. cell — a phone
  5. craft — boats
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. row — a line
  10. spring — the season
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. spring — a coil
  16. spring — of water
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cue — a hint
  19. cell — in biology
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. cue — for pool
  22. craft — a skill
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. row — to paddle

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