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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 124 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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. suit — to fit
  4. pop — soda
  5. cue — a hint
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. tear — to rip
  8. squash — the sport
  9. squash — to crush
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cue — for pool
  14. pop — music
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pop — to visit
  17. suit — clothes
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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