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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — goods
  4. date — the fruit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ground — a position
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. ground — crushed
  11. cue — for pool
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. prune — to trim
  19. stock — shares
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. cue — a hint
  22. prune — to trim
  23. kick — in football
  24. fork — in a road

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