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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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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: snap · cue · arm · ruler · tear · hand · temple · band

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. cue — a hint
  3. hand — help
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. hand — in cards
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to click
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. cue — a signal
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. tear — to rip
  14. cue — for pool
  15. tear — from crying
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. band — a music group
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. tear — from crying
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. band — a ring

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