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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. race — a contest
  3. kick — in football
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. clip — for paper
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. race — humankind
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. chest — a box
  16. chest — of your body
  17. cue — a signal
  18. chest — of your body
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. race — the arms race
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — a video

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