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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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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: bat · bound · spring · ball · clip · cue · chair · net

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. spring — a coil
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. cue — a signal
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cue — for pool
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. ball — a great time
  9. spring — the season
  10. bound — tied together
  11. clip — to cut
  12. chair — a leader
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — in sport
  15. bound — certain
  16. bound — obliged
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. net — after costs
  20. cue — a hint
  21. ball — a dance
  22. clip — a video
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. spring — of water

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