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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. ground — crushed
  3. chip — to eat
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. row — a line
  6. ground — a position
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fork — in a road
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. bear — the animal
  12. cue — a hint
  13. chip — for betting
  14. pit — in a race
  15. ground — the earth
  16. bear — the animal
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. pit — a hole
  21. row — to paddle
  22. cue — for pool
  23. fall — the season
  24. bear — to put up with

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