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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. lean — to bend
  3. lean — thin
  4. club — for dancing
  5. craft — boats
  6. chip — to eat
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. shower — rain
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. craft — a skill
  11. land — ground
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. chip — for betting
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. cue — for pool
  16. row — a line
  17. cue — a hint
  18. land — a country
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. club — a group
  21. shower — to wash
  22. row — to paddle
  23. land — to come down
  24. club — for golf

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