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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 hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. net — for catching
  3. cue — a signal
  4. tube — the underground
  5. tube — a container
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. wake — a trail
  8. scale — in music
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. cue — a hint
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. scale — size or range
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. net — in sport
  19. net — after costs
  20. cue — for pool
  21. branch — a division
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. branch — of a bank

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