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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bark — to shout
  4. season — of the year
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. field — a subject
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cue — a hint
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. cap — of ice
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. field — for sport
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. dip — to sink
  23. cap — a lid
  24. field — farmland

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