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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 120 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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — a box
  4. file — a line of people
  5. cue — a hint
  6. pit — in a race
  7. file — a tool
  8. spring — of water
  9. spring — the season
  10. chest — of your body
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. pit — a hole
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. cue — for pool
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — for sport
  19. tube — a container
  20. field — a subject
  21. tube — the underground
  22. spring — a coil
  23. file — a document
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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