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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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. spring — a coil
  4. can — to be able to
  5. can — a tin
  6. chair — a leader
  7. clip — a video
  8. cue — a signal
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — a law
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. can — a tin
  13. spring — the season
  14. rule — government
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. clip — to cut
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. row — a line
  19. row — to paddle
  20. spring — of water
  21. clip — for paper
  22. perch — the fish
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. perch — for a bird

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