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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 116 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: cue · file · bear · trunk · cell · field · land · pop

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. file — a line of people
  3. field — farmland
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. pop — music
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. field — for sport
  8. cell — in biology
  9. land — a country
  10. cue — a signal
  11. field — a subject
  12. cue — a hint
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. land — to come down
  16. cell — a phone
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. land — ground
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — soda
  24. bear — the animal

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