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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.

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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: court · object · last · pass · mug · mine · clip · cue

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. cue — for pool
  3. last — to go on
  4. court — of law
  5. pass — a permit
  6. clip — a video
  7. mine — for digging
  8. last — final
  9. clip — for paper
  10. court — of a king
  11. cue — a signal
  12. object — an aim
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mug — to rob
  16. mug — a face
  17. last — finally
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. mug — a cup
  20. object — to protest
  21. court — for sport
  22. clip — to cut
  23. cue — a hint
  24. object — a thing

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