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

Word bank: cue · stick · mug · field · safe · perch · content · cold

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. field — for sport
  3. cold — not warm
  4. mug — a face
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. cue — for pool
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cue — a hint
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. cold — an illness
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. content — the amount
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. mug — to rob
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. field — farmland
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. field — a subject
  19. content — happy
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. perch — the fish
  22. mug — a cup
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. perch — for a bird

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