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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. clip — a video
  3. cue — a signal
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cue — for pool
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. current — electric
  8. capital — money
  9. cap — a hat
  10. hand — help
  11. current — happening now
  12. capital — a city
  13. current — of water
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. clip — for paper
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. clip — to cut
  18. cap — of ice
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. cap — a lid
  21. saw — the tool
  22. toast — bread
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. cue — a hint

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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