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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 120 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: pop · land · shower · rush · band · cue · saw · cell

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. land — to come down
  3. shower — to wash
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. pop — music
  7. pop — soda
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cue — for pool
  13. land — a country
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. land — ground
  16. cell — in biology
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. band — a ring
  19. saw — the tool
  20. shower — rain
  21. cell — a phone
  22. pop — to visit
  23. cue — a hint
  24. rush — hurry

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