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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: bat · staff · cue · cell · roll · fall · pop · spell

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. roll — a cake
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cell — in biology
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. fall — to drop
  7. spell — magic
  8. staff — a stick
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bat — the animal
  11. staff — employees
  12. spell — a short time
  13. pop — soda
  14. cue — a hint
  15. roll — a list
  16. spell — letters
  17. pop — to visit
  18. cue — a signal
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. cell — a phone
  21. staff — employees
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. fall — the season
  24. cell — in a prison

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