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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: mate · cue · mug · arm · bowl · cold · row · season

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. cold — an illness
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. mate — a partner
  9. season — in sport
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. cue — for pool
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. cue — a hint
  14. cue — a signal
  15. cold — not warm
  16. row — to paddle
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mug — a cup
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. row — a line
  22. mug — to rob
  23. mug — a face
  24. mate — to breed

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