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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: cue · wax · roll · mug · stick · chest · cell · branch

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. mug — a face
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. roll — a list
  8. mug — to rob
  9. cell — in biology
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. roll — a cake
  15. cell — a phone
  16. wax — to grow
  17. cue — a signal
  18. branch — a division
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. cue — for pool
  22. chest — a box
  23. cue — a hint
  24. mug — a cup

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