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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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Word bank
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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: rest · cue · kid · scale · cell · coach

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. scale — size or range
  4. scale — in music
  5. cue — for pool
  6. rest — what's left
  7. cue — a signal
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — a phone
  11. kid — to tease
  12. rest — a break
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. rest — what's left
  16. kid — child
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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