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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: ground · face · prune · land · patient · track · rule · cue

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. track — a path
  3. face — to confront
  4. ground — crushed
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rule — government
  9. track — a song
  10. cue — a signal
  11. land — ground
  12. track — to keep track
  13. face — to point toward
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. ground — the earth
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. rule — a law
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. ground — a position
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — a country
  23. face — part of the head
  24. cue — a hint

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