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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: shower · cue · cell · staff · root · temple · fine · drill

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. fine — high quality
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. shower — to wash
  5. cell — in biology
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. drill — army training
  10. staff — employees
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. cue — a hint
  13. cue — for pool
  14. root — the cause
  15. root — of a word
  16. fine — all right
  17. drill — the tool
  18. staff — employees
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cell — a phone
  21. shower — rain
  22. root — of a plant
  23. staff — a stick
  24. drill — a practice

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