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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: staff · club · cue · current · stand · rule · tear · cold

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cue — a hint
  3. club — for golf
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. current — of water
  7. rule — a law
  8. staff — employees
  9. current — electric
  10. current — happening now
  11. club — for dancing
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. tear — from crying
  14. staff — employees
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. stand — to bear
  17. cold — not warm
  18. rule — government
  19. cue — a signal
  20. staff — a stick
  21. club — a group
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. cue — for pool
  24. cold — the Cold War

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