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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: cue · hand · content · band · straw · wake · pop · game

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. cue — for pool
  3. content — the amount
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. game — a match
  6. wake — a trail
  7. cue — a hint
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. game — wild animals
  10. pop — to visit
  11. cue — a signal
  12. band — a ring
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. pop — soda
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. hand — in cards
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. content — happy
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. pop — music
  24. hand — help

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