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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  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. cue — a signal
  2. press — newspapers
  3. bat — the animal
  4. rash — a series
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. squash — the sport
  8. cue — a hint
  9. rash — hasty
  10. shower — rain
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. track — to keep track
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. squash — to crush
  17. shower — to wash
  18. track — a song
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. track — a path
  21. press — to push
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. press — a publisher
  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