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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · mouse · band · mine · rush · cue · net · last

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. net — in sport
  3. net — for catching
  4. net — after costs
  5. cue — a hint
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. cue — for pool
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. band — a music group
  10. band — a ring
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. last — final
  13. land — ground
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. rush — hurry
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. land — a country
  19. last — to go on
  20. land — to come down
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. cue — a signal
  23. last — finally
  24. mouse — for a computer

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