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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 116 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 · clip · fork · trunk · bank · row · plane · straw

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. cue — a signal
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. cue — for pool
  9. bank — of a river
  10. fork — in a road
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. row — a line
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bank — for money
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. plane — a tool
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — a video
  23. bank — for money
  24. clip — to cut

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