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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. cue — a signal
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. clip — to cut
  8. chest — a box
  9. plane — a tool
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — a phone
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. scale — size or range
  14. track — a path
  15. clip — a video
  16. cue — a hint
  17. scale — in music
  18. track — a song
  19. bat — the animal
  20. track — to keep track
  21. chest — of your body
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. chest — of your body

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