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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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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: cell · cue · squash · stick · rush · deal · face · roll

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. cell — a phone
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rush — hurry
  6. squash — the sport
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. roll — a list
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. face — part of the head
  11. deal — to handle
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. face — to confront
  15. cue — for pool
  16. cue — a signal
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. squash — to crush
  19. face — to point toward
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. roll — a cake
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. roll — on a roll

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