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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 120 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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mate — a partner
  4. shower — rain
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rule — government
  7. row — a line
  8. rule — a law
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pop — music
  11. shower — to wash
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — size or range
  14. cue — for pool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. pop — soda
  17. mate — to breed
  18. cue — a hint
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. row — to paddle
  22. mate — a friend
  23. saw — the tool
  24. row — a quarrel

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