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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: file · ball · cue · last · wake · mine · board · hand

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. board — a committee
  4. file — a tool
  5. ball — a dance
  6. cue — a signal
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. cue — for pool
  9. file — a document
  10. hand — in cards
  11. file — a line of people
  12. last — to go on
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. ball — a great time
  15. hand — help
  16. wake — a trail
  17. last — finally
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. last — final
  21. cue — a hint
  22. board — to get on
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mine — belonging to me

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