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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 124 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: prune · plane · club · pitcher · cue · chest · drill · net

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. cue — a signal
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. club — for golf
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. net — after costs
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. drill — army training
  11. prune — to trim
  12. club — for dancing
  13. chest — of your body
  14. drill — the tool
  15. cue — for pool
  16. drill — a practice
  17. prune — to trim
  18. club — a group
  19. net — in sport
  20. plane — a tool
  21. chest — of your body
  22. cue — a hint
  23. net — for catching
  24. chest — a box

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