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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. scale — in music
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. cue — a signal
  5. cue — a hint
  6. capital — a city
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. file — a tool
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. capital — money
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. season — of the year
  16. bass — the fish
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. scale — size or range
  19. file — a line of people
  20. cue — for pool
  21. bass — low music
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. file — a document

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