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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 116 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: spring · kick · deal · wave · cue · tear · bat · fan

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. tear — from crying
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. spring — a coil
  5. bat — the animal
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. cue — for pool
  9. tear — from crying
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cue — a signal
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — the season
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. kick — in football
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. deal — to handle
  24. wave — of the sea

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