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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: bulb · branch · spring · file · staff · chair · bat · cue

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. bat — the animal
  3. branch — a division
  4. staff — employees
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. cue — a signal
  7. chair — a leader
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. spring — a coil
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. spring — of water
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. spring — the season
  15. file — a tool
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. file — a document
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. cue — for pool
  20. staff — a stick
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. file — a line of people
  23. cue — a hint
  24. chair — a professorship

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