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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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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. court — for sport
  3. cue — for pool
  4. mark — a grade
  5. row — to paddle
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. root — of a plant
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. root — of a word
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. cue — a signal
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. mark — a trace
  16. court — of law
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cell — a phone
  20. court — of a king
  21. root — the cause
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cell — in biology
  24. row — a line

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