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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.

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: fan · pitcher · rule · straw · cue · rush · content · cold

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. rule — a law
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — hurry
  12. cold — an illness
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. content — the amount
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. cue — for pool
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. cue — a signal
  20. content — happy
  21. cue — a hint
  22. cold — not warm
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. fan — a supporter

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