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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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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: cold · current · cue · rush · scale · calf · cap · clip

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cue — a signal
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. cap — a hat
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cue — for pool
  9. current — of water
  10. cold — an illness
  11. scale — in music
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. current — electric
  14. rush — hurry
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. cap — of ice
  18. current — happening now
  19. cold — not warm
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. cap — a lid
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — for paper

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