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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. cue — a hint
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. rush — hurry
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. band — a ring
  9. race — a contest
  10. race — humankind
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. dip — to sink
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. race — the arms race
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — an illness
  17. band — a music group
  18. cue — a signal
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. scale — in music
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. scale — size or range
  24. rush — to hurry

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