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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: straw · nail · lie · staff · tube · cue · game · bark

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — wild animals
  4. staff — a stick
  5. game — a match
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. cue — a hint
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. cue — for pool
  11. cue — a signal
  12. tube — the underground
  13. bark — to shout
  14. lie — to recline
  15. tube — a container
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. staff — employees
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. staff — employees
  24. nail — on a finger

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