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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: deal · perch · rash · ground · land · cue · cold · band

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. band — a ring
  3. cold — an illness
  4. band — a music group
  5. deal — to handle
  6. perch — the fish
  7. cue — a hint
  8. land — to come down
  9. rash — a series
  10. ground — a position
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. land — a country
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. rash — hasty
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. cue — a signal
  18. ground — crushed
  19. cold — not warm
  20. ground — the earth
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. land — ground

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