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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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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: squash · snap · key · cue · cold · branch · march · kick

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. cold — an illness
  3. march — music
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. cue — for pool
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. kick — in football
  9. squash — to crush
  10. cold — not warm
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. snap — to click
  13. key — for a lock
  14. march — the month
  15. key — the most important part
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. cue — a hint
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. branch — a division
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. key — in music
  23. cue — a signal
  24. squash — the sport

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