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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. spell — letters
  3. cold — not warm
  4. board — a committee
  5. field — farmland
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. board — to get on
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. cold — an illness
  12. field — a subject
  13. cue — a hint
  14. rock — music
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. rock — a stone
  17. spell — magic
  18. field — for sport
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. stem — to come from
  21. chip — to eat
  22. spell — a short time
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. chip — for betting

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