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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: scale · land · cue · straw · bulb · clip

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. cue — for pool
  3. scale — size or range
  4. clip — for paper
  5. land — to come down
  6. scale — in music
  7. land — ground
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. bulb — for light
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. cue — a hint
  13. clip — to cut
  14. land — a country
  15. bulb — for light
  16. clip — a video
  17. cue — a signal
  18. straw — dry grass

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