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

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. band — a ring
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cue — a signal
  5. tube — a container
  6. band — a music group
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. cue — for pool
  12. last — to go on
  13. last — finally
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. last — final
  16. deal — to handle
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wound — an injury
  19. court — of law
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. court — of a king
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. cue — a hint
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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