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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 · shower · last · face · stock · suit · mine · swing

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. cue — a hint
  3. cue — for pool
  4. swing — music
  5. stock — goods
  6. shower — rain
  7. last — final
  8. suit — clothes
  9. suit — to fit
  10. last — to go on
  11. suit — in cards
  12. mine — for digging
  13. swing — in golf
  14. face — to point toward
  15. stock — shares
  16. shower — to wash
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. last — finally
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. face — to confront
  23. cue — a signal
  24. face — part of the head

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