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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. cell — a phone
  3. stand — to bear
  4. pit — a hole
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. face — to point toward
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. cell — in biology
  9. face — to confront
  10. pit — in a race
  11. stock — shares
  12. face — part of the head
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. cue — for pool
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. stock — goods
  19. content — happy
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. cue — a signal
  22. content — the amount
  23. prune — to trim
  24. prune — to trim

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