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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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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: chest · cell · race · prune · cabinet · cue · bulb · bound

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cue — a signal
  3. bound — certain
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. race — the arms race
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cue — for pool
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. race — humankind
  12. bulb — for light
  13. race — a contest
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. chest — a box
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bound — tied together
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bound — obliged
  24. cell — in biology

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