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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 120 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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. last — final
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. last — to go on
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. content — happy
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. cue — for pool
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. snap — to click
  18. bear — the animal
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. pound — a weight
  22. cue — a hint
  23. content — the amount
  24. last — finally

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