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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. shower — rain
  6. cue — a signal
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. fall — to drop
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. pitch — completely
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. cue — a hint
  17. clip — to cut
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. cue — for pool
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. pitch — a sports field

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