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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: fine · rest · branch · cue · band · kid · content · pitch

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. band — a ring
  3. kid — to tease
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. cue — a signal
  6. content — happy
  7. kid — child
  8. rest — what's left
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. rest — a break
  12. fine — all right
  13. band — a music group
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. pitch — completely
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cue — a hint
  18. branch — a division
  19. fine — high quality
  20. rest — what's left
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. content — the amount

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