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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. last — to go on
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. tube — a container
  5. tube — the underground
  6. land — ground
  7. shower — to wash
  8. cue — a hint
  9. drill — army training
  10. cue — for pool
  11. last — final
  12. land — a country
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. present — the time now
  15. lean — thin
  16. present — a gift
  17. drill — the tool
  18. present — there
  19. drill — a practice
  20. last — finally
  21. land — to come down
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. lean — to bend
  24. shower — rain

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