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

Word bank: cue · fork · pound · fall · bat · mark

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. cue — a hint
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. cue — a signal
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fall — the season
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bat — the animal
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. mark — a trace
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. fork — in a road
  13. mark — a grade
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. cue — for pool
  18. fall — to drop

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