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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 · last · degree · shower · cell · lash · band · mug

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. mug — a cup
  3. mug — to rob
  4. last — to go on
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. shower — rain
  7. cell — in biology
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — from a university
  11. cue — a signal
  12. band — a music group
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. cell — a phone
  15. last — final
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. last — finally
  18. shower — to wash
  19. cue — for pool
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. degree — an amount
  22. cue — a hint
  23. mug — a face
  24. band — a ring

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