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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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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: land · rule · wave · cue · bat · charge · pop · hand

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — in cards
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. land — ground
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. pop — soda
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. pop — to visit
  10. charge — electricity
  11. charge — a price
  12. cue — for pool
  13. rule — government
  14. land — to come down
  15. rule — a law
  16. hand — help
  17. charge — in control
  18. cue — a signal
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. bat — the animal
  23. cue — a hint
  24. land — a country

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