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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cue — for pool
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. spell — magic
  7. cue — a hint
  8. wound — an injury
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. spell — a short time
  15. wax — to grow
  16. cue — a signal
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. lie — to recline
  20. cold — an illness
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. spell — letters

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