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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: saw · current · bear · kid · cold · cue · can · bound

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cue — a signal
  3. bound — tied together
  4. cue — a hint
  5. kid — to tease
  6. can — to be able to
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. bear — the animal
  10. can — a tin
  11. bear — the animal
  12. current — happening now
  13. saw — the tool
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cue — for pool
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bound — certain
  18. can — a tin
  19. kid — child
  20. current — of water
  21. bound — obliged
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. current — electric
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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