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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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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: cue · cold · tear · band · suit · bear · rash · pitch

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. cue — a hint
  4. rash — hasty
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bear — the animal
  8. cold — not warm
  9. band — a ring
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. suit — in cards
  12. rash — a series
  13. pitch — completely
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bear — the animal
  16. cue — for pool
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. tear — to rip
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. suit — clothes
  22. suit — to fit
  23. cue — a signal
  24. cold — an illness

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