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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: bank · cue · kid · bark · capital · ball · track · mouse

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. ball — a great time
  4. cue — a signal
  5. track — to keep track
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. track — a path
  8. bank — for money
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. track — a song
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bank — of a river
  14. capital — a city
  15. cue — for pool
  16. kid — child
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. cue — a hint
  20. capital — money
  21. bank — for money
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bark — to shout

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