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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: march · cue · net · plane · chest · rest · leaves · kid

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. plane — a tool
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cue — a signal
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. net — in sport
  7. chest — of your body
  8. rest — what's left
  9. march — the month
  10. kid — to tease
  11. net — for catching
  12. rest — a break
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. march — music
  16. chest — a box
  17. net — after costs
  18. kid — child
  19. rest — what's left
  20. march — the month
  21. cue — for pool
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. chest — of your body
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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