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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: cabinet · rest · wind · pop · cue · plane · straw · chair

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. pop — music
  3. rest — a break
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. pop — soda
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rest — what's left
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cue — a signal
  11. chair — a leader
  12. plane — a tool
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. rest — what's left
  16. cue — for pool
  17. pop — to visit
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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