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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 120 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: kid · rest · leaves · pound · hide · cue · capital · coach

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. cue — a signal
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. pound — a weight
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. cue — for pool
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. capital — a city
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. rest — what's left
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. kid — child
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — a break
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. capital — money
  24. kid — to tease

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