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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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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 · file · temple · prune · bat · rest · wake · row

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a document
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. prune — to trim
  6. cue — for pool
  7. cue — a hint
  8. prune — to trim
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — to paddle
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. wake — a trail
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. bat — the animal
  17. rest — what's left
  18. cue — a signal
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. rest — what's left
  21. file — a tool
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. row — a line
  24. bat — for baseball

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