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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: fall · last · bore · pop · cue · bear · pound · chest

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. last — finally
  3. chest — a box
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. pop — music
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. bore — to tire
  9. pop — soda
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bear — the animal
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pop — to visit
  14. fall — the season
  15. cue — a hint
  16. last — final
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. last — to go on
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. fall — to drop
  22. pound — a weight
  23. cue — for pool
  24. bore — to drill

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