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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. ball — a dance
  3. cold — not warm
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. row — to paddle
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cue — a signal
  8. capital — money
  9. cue — a hint
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cue — for pool
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. capital — a city
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. land — a country
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — a line
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — ground
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. ball — a round shape

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