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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pop · hide · season · cold · tube · net · content · cue

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. cue — for pool
  3. content — happy
  4. season — of the year
  5. cold — an illness
  6. pop — soda
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. net — in sport
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. pop — to visit
  12. tube — the underground
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. net — after costs
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. cold — not warm
  17. tube — a container
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. net — for catching
  20. cue — a signal
  21. pop — music
  22. cue — a hint
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. season — in 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