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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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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: plane · spring · branch · cue · content · straw · mate · vault

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. branch — a division
  3. spring — of water
  4. cue — for pool
  5. spring — a coil
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. vault — a safe
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. spring — the season
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. mate — a friend
  17. plane — a tool
  18. cue — a hint
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — happy
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. cue — a signal
  24. mate — a partner

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