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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. land — to come down
  3. swing — to play on
  4. rash — hasty
  5. last — to go on
  6. land — ground
  7. swing — music
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. land — a country
  11. last — final
  12. wound — an injury
  13. swing — in golf
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. cue — for pool
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cue — a signal
  23. last — finally
  24. rash — a series

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