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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. cue — a signal
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. cue — for pool
  7. band — a ring
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. band — a music group
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. plane — a tool
  14. hand — help
  15. branch — a division
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. 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