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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. march — music
  3. cue — for pool
  4. squash — the sport
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. march — the month
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. perch — the fish
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. squash — to crush
  15. kid — to tease
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. march — the month
  18. kid — child
  19. saw — the tool
  20. content — happy
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. saw — the tool
  23. cue — a signal
  24. content — the amount

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