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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 116 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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. prune — to trim
  3. cell — in biology
  4. land — ground
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — for pool
  12. ball — a great time
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. rest — a break
  16. ball — a dance
  17. rest — what's left
  18. cell — a phone
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. land — to come down
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. land — a country
  24. snap — to click

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