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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: cue · pass · spring · wind · fine · track · bat · cold

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. fine — all right
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fine — high quality
  9. track — a song
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. cold — an illness
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. track — to keep track
  15. pass — a permit
  16. cue — a hint
  17. track — a path
  18. spring — of water
  19. cue — a signal
  20. cold — not warm
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. spring — the season
  24. cue — for pool

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