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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. club — for dancing
  3. last — final
  4. bass — the fish
  5. cue — a signal
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bass — low music
  8. club — for golf
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. mark — a grade
  12. shower — rain
  13. cue — for pool
  14. last — to go on
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. kid — child
  17. club — a group
  18. mark — a trace
  19. cue — a hint
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. shower — to wash
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. dip — to sink

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