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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: file · row · game · straw · scale · cue · capital · date

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. cue — a signal
  3. row — to paddle
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. date — the fruit
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. scale — size or range
  9. game — a match
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. scale — in music
  13. game — wild animals
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — a line
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. file — a document
  19. capital — money
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. cue — a hint
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. capital — a city

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