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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. spring — the season
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. fall — to drop
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cue — a hint
  10. cue — a signal
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. cue — for pool
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. spring — a coil
  16. spring — of water
  17. band — a music group
  18. band — a ring
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. fall — the season
  21. chair — a leader
  22. kick — in football
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. bowl — a football final

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