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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: straw · cabinet · chest · fork · pop · mate · cue · wake

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. chest — of your body
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. wake — a trail
  6. mate — to breed
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pop — soda
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. cue — a signal
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. fork — in a road
  14. cue — a hint
  15. mate — a partner
  16. cue — for pool
  17. pop — music
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. mate — a friend
  20. pop — to visit
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — a straw man

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