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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. hand — help
  3. cue — for pool
  4. band — a music group
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. stem — to come from
  10. hand — in cards
  11. rock — music
  12. cue — a hint
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. content — happy
  15. cue — a signal
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. rock — a stone
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. plane — a tool
  21. content — the amount
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. plane — an aircraft

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