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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: swing · shower · cue · cell · hand · spell · suit · content

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. swing — in golf
  3. hand — help
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. content — the amount
  6. hand — in cards
  7. shower — rain
  8. cell — a phone
  9. spell — letters
  10. cue — a hint
  11. swing — to play on
  12. spell — magic
  13. cue — for pool
  14. suit — clothes
  15. content — happy
  16. swing — music
  17. suit — to fit
  18. cell — in biology
  19. suit — in cards
  20. cue — a signal
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. spell — a short time

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