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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 · field · mouse · deal · capital · wind · racket · present

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cue — a signal
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. field — farmland
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. present — a gift
  8. wind — moving air
  9. deal — to handle
  10. present — there
  11. capital — money
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. wind — moving air
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. cue — for pool
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. field — for sport
  19. cue — a hint
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. field — a subject
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. racket — for tennis
  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