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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: band · spring · cue · lie · wound · staff · mug · wake

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. band — a music group
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. band — a ring
  7. spring — of water
  8. mug — a face
  9. cue — for pool
  10. spring — a coil
  11. lie — to recline
  12. staff — employees
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mug — a cup
  15. spring — the season
  16. mug — to rob
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. staff — a stick
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. staff — employees
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. cue — a hint
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wound — an injury

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