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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. kid — to tease
  5. lie — to recline
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. staff — a stick
  9. club — for golf
  10. cue — a hint
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. cue — a signal
  13. capital — a city
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. kid — child
  16. club — for dancing
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — employees
  19. club — a group
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — money
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. pound — a weight
  24. cue — for pool

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