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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: rule · court · cue · swing · band · stock · tube · straw

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. cue — a hint
  3. stock — shares
  4. cue — a signal
  5. swing — in golf
  6. band — a music group
  7. court — for sport
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a ring
  10. court — of law
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. tube — the underground
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. swing — music
  15. rule — government
  16. stock — goods
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. court — of a king
  19. swing — to play on
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. rule — a law
  23. tube — a container
  24. rule — to rule out

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