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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: scale · row · hand · cue · bound · fall · staff · mine

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bound — obliged
  3. fall — to drop
  4. row — a line
  5. staff — a stick
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. staff — employees
  8. scale — size or range
  9. fall — the season
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. scale — in music
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bound — tied together
  14. cue — for pool
  15. row — to paddle
  16. cue — a signal
  17. staff — employees
  18. bound — certain
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — in cards
  22. cue — a hint
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. fall — to drop

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