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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 116 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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. cap — a hat
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cap — of ice
  10. capital — money
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. capital — a city
  16. cue — for pool
  17. bark — to shout
  18. cap — a lid
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. cue — a hint
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. chair — a leader
  24. hide — animal skin

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