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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. ball — a great time
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cue — for pool
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. pop — to visit
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. hand — in cards
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. cue — a hint
  11. ball — a dance
  12. pop — music
  13. cue — a signal
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. hand — help
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. rush — hurry
  21. pop — soda
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. cold — an illness
  24. rush — to hurry

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