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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cue · tube · field · prune · lean · bat

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. 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. field — for sport
  2. cue — a signal
  3. field — farmland
  4. tube — a container
  5. cue — a hint
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. field — a subject
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to bend
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. tube — the underground
  13. cue — for pool
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bat — the animal
  18. 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