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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: cold · cue · fall · cap · trunk · branch · wake · rock

  1. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. fall — to drop
  3. cold — not warm
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wake — a trail
  8. cap — of ice
  9. rock — music
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. branch — a division
  12. fall — the season
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cap — a lid
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. cap — a hat
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. cue — a signal
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. cue — for pool
  24. cue — a hint

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