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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. band — a music group
  3. field — farmland
  4. cue — a signal
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. prune — to trim
  7. track — a song
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — a subject
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. band — a ring
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. board — to get on
  16. cue — for pool
  17. board — a committee
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. tube — the underground
  20. track — to keep track
  21. tube — a container
  22. track — a path
  23. prune — to trim
  24. tube — in a tire

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