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

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. swing — music
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. squash — to crush
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bear — the animal
  9. net — in sport
  10. net — after costs
  11. bear — the animal
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. net — for catching
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. squash — the sport
  16. toast — bread
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. swing — to play on
  19. swing — in golf
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. cabinet — ministers

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