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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: clip · stand · board · cell · row · cue · pound · safe

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — to get on
  6. cue — for pool
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. clip — a video
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. clip — to cut
  14. stand — to bear
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. cell — a phone
  17. clip — for paper
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cue — a hint
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. pound — a weight
  23. row — a line
  24. row — to paddle

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