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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: branch · perch · cue · lie · club · spring · bat · kick

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. perch — the fish
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. club — for dancing
  6. lie — to recline
  7. cue — a signal
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. club — for golf
  10. kick — in football
  11. bat — the animal
  12. branch — a division
  13. spring — the season
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. club — a group
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. cue — for pool
  18. spring — a coil
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. spring — of water
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. perch — for a bird

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