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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — the season
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — in football
  6. cue — a hint
  7. spring — a coil
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — the animal
  11. fall — to drop
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. fall — the season
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. cue — a signal
  19. net — for catching
  20. hand — help
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. fall — to drop
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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