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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. net — in sport
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. mug — a cup
  5. mine — for digging
  6. net — for catching
  7. file — a tool
  8. mug — a face
  9. file — a document
  10. capital — money
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. rock — music
  13. file — a line of people
  14. capital — a city
  15. cue — a hint
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. cue — for pool
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. net — after costs
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mug — to rob
  24. rock — a 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