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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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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: snap · band · scale · ground · wind · cue · cell · craft

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. cue — a hint
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. craft — boats
  6. band — a ring
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. cell — in biology
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. band — a music group
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. cell — a phone
  14. craft — a skill
  15. ground — the earth
  16. cue — for pool
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. ground — crushed
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cue — a signal
  22. snap — to click
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — size or range

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