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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. kick — in football
  4. mark — a trace
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cue — a hint
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. spell — magic
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bass — low music
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. cold — not warm
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. bore — to drill
  18. mark — a grade
  19. bass — the fish
  20. cue — for pool
  21. bore — to tire
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. spell — a short time

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