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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: straw · cue · club · present · vault · march · cell · game

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — music
  3. present — there
  4. club — for golf
  5. cue — for pool
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. present — a gift
  8. vault — a safe
  9. game — wild animals
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. cell — a phone
  12. cue — a signal
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. present — the time now
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. game — a match
  17. club — a group
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. club — for dancing
  20. cue — a hint
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. cell — in biology
  24. march — the month

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