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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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468
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: cabinet · bass · cold · calf · cue · hand · fork · squash

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. hand — in cards
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. squash — the sport
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. bass — low music
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. squash — to crush
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cue — a signal
  15. bass — the fish
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. cue — a hint
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. fork — in a road
  23. cue — for pool
  24. cabinet — ministers

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