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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: cue · scale · hand · fork · saw · arm · kid · band

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. cue — a signal
  3. kid — child
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. cue — a hint
  10. hand — help
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. saw — the tool
  15. band — a ring
  16. cue — for pool
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. saw — the tool
  21. band — a music group
  22. kid — to tease
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. scale — in music

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