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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: hand · cue · staff · saw · straw · chest · root · suit

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. chest — of your body
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. cue — for pool
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — in cards
  10. suit — to fit
  11. cue — a signal
  12. suit — clothes
  13. staff — employees
  14. root — of a plant
  15. staff — employees
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cue — a hint
  18. suit — in cards
  19. saw — the tool
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. root — of a word
  22. root — the cause
  23. hand — help
  24. staff — a stick

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