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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: net · land · cold · vault · plane · branch · cue · squash

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. cold — not warm
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — ground
  5. plane — a tool
  6. cold — an illness
  7. vault — a safe
  8. squash — the sport
  9. cue — for pool
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. land — a country
  15. net — for catching
  16. squash — to crush
  17. cue — a signal
  18. branch — a division
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. cue — a hint
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. net — after costs

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