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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: clip · staff · chest · cue · mark · mug · bass · court

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. clip — a video
  3. chest — of your body
  4. clip — to cut
  5. mark — a grade
  6. cue — for pool
  7. cue — a signal
  8. clip — for paper
  9. mug — a cup
  10. staff — a stick
  11. mark — a trace
  12. staff — employees
  13. cue — a hint
  14. bass — low music
  15. staff — employees
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mug — to rob
  18. mug — a face
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — of law
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. court — for sport
  23. bass — the fish
  24. chest — a box

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