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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: board · racket · clip · cell · mouse · march · cue · hide

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. board — to get on
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. cue — a signal
  5. clip — to cut
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. march — music
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. cell — in biology
  13. clip — a video
  14. cell — a phone
  15. board — a committee
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. march — the month
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. cue — for pool
  21. cue — a hint
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. clip — for paper
  24. march — the month

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