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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: wind · roll · cue · sharp · rash · rest · straw · board

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. rash — a series
  3. rest — a break
  4. roll — a cake
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. board — to get on
  7. rash — hasty
  8. sharp — clever
  9. rest — what's left
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. roll — a list
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. cue — a signal
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. cue — for pool
  21. rest — what's left
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  24. board — a committee

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