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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. pop — soda
  4. cue — a signal
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. press — a publisher
  7. pop — music
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. rule — government
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. pop — to visit
  13. drill — a practice
  14. press — newspapers
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bat — the animal
  17. cue — for pool
  18. drill — the tool
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. drill — army training
  21. press — to push
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. kick — in football
  24. rule — a law

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