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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · shower · ball · bulb · rule · pit · clip · capital

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. clip — for paper
  3. cue — a hint
  4. capital — a city
  5. clip — to cut
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. capital — money
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. bulb — for light
  12. shower — rain
  13. cue — for pool
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a dance
  16. clip — a video
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. pit — in a race
  20. shower — to wash
  21. rule — government
  22. rule — a law
  23. pit — a hole
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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