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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. bat — the animal
  3. rule — a law
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. cue — a signal
  6. rush — hurry
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. spell — letters
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. spell — magic
  17. mine — for digging
  18. cue — for pool
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rule — government
  21. can — to be able to
  22. cold — not warm
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. cue — a hint

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