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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: straw · cap · cue · pitcher · staff · cold · bank · calf

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. cue — a hint
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. staff — a stick
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. staff — employees
  8. staff — employees
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cap — of ice
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. cue — for pool
  16. cold — not warm
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cap — a hat
  21. bank — of a river
  22. bank — for money
  23. bank — for money
  24. cap — a lid

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