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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. season — in sport
  5. bulb — for light
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. cue — for pool
  8. season — of the year
  9. shower — to wash
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. court — of law
  12. rush — hurry
  13. court — for sport
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. bulb — for light
  17. cold — an illness
  18. court — of a king
  19. shower — rain
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cold — not warm
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. cold — the Cold War

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