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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. last — finally
  3. bass — low music
  4. last — final
  5. spell — a short time
  6. last — to go on
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. land — to come down
  9. bass — the fish
  10. tear — to rip
  11. land — a country
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. spell — magic
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cue — a hint
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. land — ground
  19. spell — letters
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. cue — for pool
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. tear — from crying
  24. fan — a supporter

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