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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: drill · cue · stem · clip · saw · cell · pop · pitcher

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. clip — for paper
  5. cell — in biology
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. clip — a video
  10. cell — a phone
  11. saw — the tool
  12. pop — music
  13. saw — the tool
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pop — to visit
  16. drill — a practice
  17. stem — to come from
  18. drill — the tool
  19. pop — soda
  20. cue — a hint
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. drill — army training
  24. cue — for pool

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