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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. kick — in football
  3. face — to confront
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. shower — rain
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. cue — for pool
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. tube — the underground
  12. face — to point toward
  13. perch — the fish
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. shower — to wash
  16. pit — in a race
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. pit — a hole
  19. face — part of the head
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. cue — a hint
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — a container
  24. cold — an illness

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