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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. pit — a hole
  3. craft — boats
  4. track — to keep track
  5. cue — for pool
  6. cue — a hint
  7. track — a path
  8. track — a song
  9. race — humankind
  10. wound — an injury
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — the arms race
  17. craft — a skill
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. sharp — clever
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. pit — in a race
  24. wound — an injury

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