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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: net · band · tube · capital · bowl · snap · chair · cue

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. tube — a container
  4. chair — a leader
  5. tube — the underground
  6. band — a music group
  7. snap — to click
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — for catching
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. band — a ring
  13. capital — a city
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. cue — a hint
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. capital — money
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. cue — for pool
  24. net — after costs

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