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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. drill — the tool
  3. pit — in a race
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. pit — a hole
  7. date — the fruit
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cue — a signal
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. drill — army training
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cold — not warm
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. drill — a practice
  22. stem — to come from
  23. cold — an illness
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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