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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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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: object · coach · cue · club · shower · stem · last · prune

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — final
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. cue — a hint
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — a group
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. cue — for pool
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. shower — to wash
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. object — an aim
  15. object — a thing
  16. shower — rain
  17. last — finally
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. club — for dancing
  20. object — to protest
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. cue — a signal
  24. prune — the fruit

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