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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 hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — a phone
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. cue — a signal
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — help
  8. cue — a hint
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. pound — a weight
  13. cue — for pool
  14. season — of the year
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. rule — government
  17. deal — to handle
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. season — in sport
  20. rule — a law
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. cell — in biology
  24. season — to add flavour

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