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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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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: lean · cell · file · mine · cue · ground · root · fall

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cue — for pool
  6. file — a tool
  7. fall — to drop
  8. lean — to bend
  9. root — of a plant
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. cell — a phone
  12. root — the cause
  13. ground — crushed
  14. root — of a word
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. file — a line of people
  18. cue — a signal
  19. lean — thin
  20. ground — the earth
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. file — a document
  23. fall — the season
  24. 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