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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. pop — music
  3. net — in sport
  4. bat — the animal
  5. net — after costs
  6. rest — a break
  7. cue — a signal
  8. row — to paddle
  9. season — in sport
  10. file — a tool
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. rest — what's left
  13. season — of the year
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. row — a line
  16. cue — a hint
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. file — a document
  20. pop — soda
  21. pop — to visit
  22. file — a line of people
  23. net — for catching
  24. rest — what's left

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