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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 116 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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — an illness
  3. press — a publisher
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. track — to keep track
  7. court — of law
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. cue — a hint
  11. press — newspapers
  12. cue — for pool
  13. kick — in football
  14. press — to push
  15. last — to go on
  16. track — a path
  17. last — final
  18. last — finally
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. cue — a signal
  21. track — a song
  22. court — of a king
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. court — for sport

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