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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 116 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: hand · cue · prune · vault · racket · suit · land · deal

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. cue — for pool
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. prune — to trim
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. vault — a safe
  7. suit — to fit
  8. cue — a signal
  9. deal — to handle
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. hand — help
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. land — ground
  16. cue — a hint
  17. suit — in cards
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. suit — clothes
  20. prune — to trim
  21. land — to come down
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. hand — in cards
  24. land — a country

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