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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 · toast · chair · clip · cue · pitcher · branch · temple

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. branch — a division
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. clip — to cut
  10. chair — a leader
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. cue — a hint
  16. clip — a video
  17. toast — bread
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. cue — for pool
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. cue — a signal
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. chair — to sit on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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