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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: leaves · cue · ground · dip · prune · land · cell · fall

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. land — ground
  3. dip — to sink
  4. prune — to trim
  5. cue — a signal
  6. ground — the earth
  7. fall — to drop
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. land — to come down
  10. cell — a phone
  11. fall — the season
  12. fall — to drop
  13. ground — a position
  14. cue — a hint
  15. ground — crushed
  16. cell — in biology
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. cue — for pool
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. prune — to trim
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. land — a country

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