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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. cue — for pool
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. season — of the year
  5. chest — a box
  6. cue — a signal
  7. drill — a practice
  8. shower — rain
  9. pit — in a race
  10. season — in sport
  11. shower — to wash
  12. last — final
  13. chest — of your body
  14. club — for dancing
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. pit — a hole
  18. club — for golf
  19. drill — army training
  20. chest — of your body
  21. last — finally
  22. last — to go on
  23. cue — a hint
  24. club — a group

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