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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. race — the arms race
  3. key — the most important part
  4. key — in music
  5. game — a match
  6. pound — a weight
  7. lean — thin
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. race — a contest
  10. race — humankind
  11. lean — to bend
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. spell — a short time
  14. prune — to trim
  15. spell — letters
  16. cue — for pool
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. prune — to trim
  19. cue — a hint
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. game — wild animals
  23. key — for a lock
  24. spell — magic

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