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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: cap · straw · season · lash · cue · tube · cold · suit

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. season — of the year
  4. cap — of ice
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. cold — not warm
  7. suit — clothes
  8. suit — in cards
  9. season — in sport
  10. cold — an illness
  11. tube — the underground
  12. cue — for pool
  13. suit — to fit
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. cap — a hat
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. cue — a signal
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. cue — a hint
  23. tube — a container
  24. cold — the Cold War

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