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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: cue · pitch · wind · drill · tear · jam · fall · rest

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. drill — the tool
  4. fall — the season
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. tear — to rip
  7. fall — to drop
  8. cue — for pool
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. tear — from crying
  12. fall — to drop
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rest — a break
  15. rest — what's left
  16. cue — a hint
  17. wind — moving air
  18. tear — from crying
  19. drill — a practice
  20. rest — what's left
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. drill — army training
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sports field

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