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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. key — in music
  3. key — for a lock
  4. cue — a signal
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. race — humankind
  8. key — the most important part
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. bark — to shout
  14. race — a contest
  15. season — in sport
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. hand — help
  19. race — the arms race
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. band — a music group
  22. cue — for pool
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. 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