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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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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: fork · cue · clip · bass · rush · hand · foot · tear

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. fork — in a road
  5. cue — a hint
  6. cue — a signal
  7. foot — a measure
  8. tear — to rip
  9. clip — for paper
  10. rush — hurry
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. clip — to cut
  16. hand — help
  17. bass — the fish
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bass — low music
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. tear — from crying
  23. clip — a video
  24. hand — part of the body

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