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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 hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. hand — help
  4. bound — tied together
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. cue — a signal
  7. board — to get on
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — certain
  10. cue — for pool
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. tube — a container
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. tube — the underground
  17. spring — a coil
  18. cue — a hint
  19. board — a committee
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. spring — of water
  23. hand — in cards
  24. spring — the season

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