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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: cabinet · ball · wind · row · fall · cue · club · sharp

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. club — for golf
  5. ball — a great time
  6. cue — for pool
  7. fall — the season
  8. club — for dancing
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. club — a group
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. cue — a signal
  14. row — to paddle
  15. ball — a dance
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. row — a line
  20. sharp — clever
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. wind — moving air

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