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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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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 · cold · drill · cell · lash · bound · stand · plane

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. cue — a signal
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cell — a phone
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — obliged
  7. cue — a hint
  8. drill — army training
  9. bound — certain
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. cell — in biology
  13. drill — a practice
  14. cue — for pool
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. drill — the tool
  18. cold — not warm
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stand — to bear
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. plane — a tool

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