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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. game — wild animals
  7. net — for catching
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. net — after costs
  10. game — a match
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. bark — to shout
  13. fine — high quality
  14. capital — money
  15. net — in sport
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. cue — for pool
  18. toast — bread
  19. capital — a city
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. cue — a hint
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. fine — all right

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