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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. shower — rain
  3. shower — to wash
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — help
  6. cell — in biology
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. suit — clothes
  9. chip — to eat
  10. chip — for betting
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cell — a phone
  18. suit — to fit
  19. cold — an illness
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. cold — not warm
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. cue — a signal
  24. cue — for pool

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