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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: staff · chest · craft · kid · game · wake · cue · bank

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. kid — to tease
  3. cue — a hint
  4. staff — employees
  5. craft — boats
  6. chest — a box
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. cue — a signal
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bank — for money
  13. bank — of a river
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. cue — for pool
  16. wake — a trail
  17. bank — for money
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — child
  20. staff — a stick
  21. game — wild animals
  22. chest — of your body
  23. game — a match
  24. craft — a skill

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