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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 120 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: suit · cue · season · bat · bark · straw

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. suit — to fit
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. cue — a signal
  5. bark — to shout
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. suit — clothes
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. suit — in cards
  12. season — of the year
  13. cue — for pool
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. season — in sport
  16. cue — a hint
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. bat — the animal

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