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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: net · nail · toast · branch · race · cue · wind · lie

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. race — humankind
  3. net — in sport
  4. lie — to recline
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cue — a signal
  10. toast — bread
  11. branch — a division
  12. wind — moving air
  13. race — the arms race
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. net — after costs
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. race — a contest
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. net — for catching
  24. wind — moving air

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