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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 120 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: hide · club · squash · branch · rash · row · hand · cue

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. hand — in cards
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. cue — a signal
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. row — to paddle
  8. cue — a hint
  9. club — a group
  10. club — for golf
  11. hand — help
  12. club — for dancing
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. squash — to crush
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. rash — hasty
  19. squash — the sport
  20. rash — a series
  21. branch — a division
  22. row — a line
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. cue — for pool

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