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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: cap · straw · cue · band · spring · charge · branch · pitcher

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. charge — a price
  3. cue — a hint
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. cue — for pool
  7. cap — of ice
  8. branch — a division
  9. cap — a lid
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. spring — the season
  15. charge — electricity
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. cue — a signal
  22. band — a ring
  23. band — a music group
  24. cap — a hat

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