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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. cue — a signal
  3. drill — army training
  4. drill — the tool
  5. tube — a container
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. cue — for pool
  8. toast — bread
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. cold — an illness
  11. tube — the underground
  12. drill — a practice
  13. court — of law
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — from a university
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. court — of a king
  19. cold — not warm
  20. degree — an amount
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. court — for sport

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