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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — magic
  4. cap — a lid
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bank — for money
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bank — for money
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. cue — for pool
  12. lean — to bend
  13. cue — a hint
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cap — of ice
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bank — of a river
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. lean — thin
  22. tear — to rip
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. tear — from crying

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