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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. hand — in cards
  6. race — a contest
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. staff — a stick
  9. race — humankind
  10. hand — help
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. race — the arms race
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. staff — employees
  18. bat — the animal
  19. staff — employees
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rush — hurry
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — hasty

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