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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. cue — a hint
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. mate — a friend
  6. cue — a signal
  7. row — to paddle
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. mate — a partner
  10. plane — a tool
  11. staff — employees
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. last — to go on
  14. kid — to tease
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. cue — for pool
  18. mate — to breed
  19. staff — employees
  20. row — a line
  21. kid — child
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. last — final
  24. last — finally

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