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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: bulb · cue · prune · mark · court · fall · cold · row

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. court — of a king
  5. row — a line
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. cue — for pool
  8. fall — the season
  9. prune — to trim
  10. cue — a hint
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bulb — for light
  15. mark — a grade
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. mark — a trace
  19. cue — a signal
  20. fall — to drop
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bulb — for light
  23. row — to paddle
  24. cold — not warm

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