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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: club · racket · straw · season · wound · leaves · lie · cue

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cue — for pool
  4. wound — an injury
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. club — for dancing
  9. season — in sport
  10. wound — an injury
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. cue — a signal
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. club — a group
  15. lie — to recline
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. club — for golf
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. cue — a hint
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. racket — for tennis

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