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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: shower · cabinet · cue · face · straw · prune · staff · march

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. face — to confront
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. shower — rain
  6. staff — employees
  7. shower — to wash
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. march — music
  11. staff — employees
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cue — for pool
  15. face — part of the head
  16. cue — a signal
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. prune — to trim
  22. face — to point toward
  23. staff — a stick
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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