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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: scale · rest · cue · tube · fall · row · mine · patient

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. cue — a signal
  4. fall — to drop
  5. rest — a break
  6. scale — size or range
  7. cue — for pool
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cue — a hint
  11. fall — to drop
  12. mine — for digging
  13. fall — the season
  14. row — a line
  15. tube — a container
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. scale — in music
  21. rest — what's left
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. row — to paddle
  24. tube — the underground

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