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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: cue · cell · kick · rule · fan · bank · fine · last

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. cue — a hint
  3. last — final
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bank — for money
  6. cue — for pool
  7. bank — of a river
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. rule — a law
  11. kick — in football
  12. cell — a phone
  13. bank — for money
  14. cue — a signal
  15. fine — high quality
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. last — to go on
  18. rule — government
  19. cell — in biology
  20. fine — all right
  21. last — finally
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. fan — to cool the air

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