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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. bat — the animal
  4. board — a committee
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. ball — a dance
  9. cue — a signal
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wind — moving air
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. mine — for digging
  17. ball — a great time
  18. rush — hurry
  19. cue — for pool
  20. board — to get on
  21. cue — a hint
  22. dip — to sink
  23. wind — moving air
  24. ball — a round shape

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