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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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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: cold · face · cell · chip · cue · racket · season · nail

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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. season — in sport
  4. cold — an illness
  5. face — to point toward
  6. season — of the year
  7. face — part of the head
  8. cell — a phone
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cue — a hint
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. chip — to eat
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. face — to confront
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. chip — for betting

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