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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 116 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 · shower · kid · rest · chip · pop · prune · swing

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. shower — to wash
  3. cue — for pool
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. rest — what's left
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pop — to visit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cue — a hint
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — in golf
  13. kid — child
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. pop — music
  16. rest — what's left
  17. chip — to eat
  18. shower — rain
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. swing — to play on
  21. chip — for betting
  22. pop — soda
  23. cue — a signal
  24. rest — a break

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