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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cold — an illness
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cue — for pool
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. spring — of water
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. roll — a list
  10. cold — not warm
  11. game — a match
  12. spring — the season
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. roll — a cake
  19. lean — to bend
  20. spring — a coil
  21. lean — thin
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. mouse — for a computer

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