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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. cue — a signal
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. chip — for betting
  9. capital — a city
  10. chip — to eat
  11. kick — in football
  12. cue — a hint
  13. capital — money
  14. cue — for pool
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. vault — a safe
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. cold — an illness
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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