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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. cue — a signal
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. cell — in biology
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — a line
  8. rule — a law
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. fine — all right
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. band — a music group
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. cue — a hint
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cell — a phone
  21. rule — government
  22. fine — high quality
  23. row — to paddle
  24. fine — a penalty

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