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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. cue — for pool
  3. scale — size or range
  4. object — an aim
  5. swing — to play on
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — a thing
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. content — happy
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. swing — in golf
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. cue — a signal
  18. swing — music
  19. bat — the animal
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. content — the amount
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. scale — in music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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