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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: hand · rash · bound · scale · stick · tear · leaves · cue

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. cue — a signal
  5. tear — to rip
  6. hand — in cards
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. scale — size or range
  9. bound — certain
  10. rash — a series
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rash — hasty
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. cue — a hint
  16. bound — obliged
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. scale — in music
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. hand — help
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. bound — tied together

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