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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. pop — to visit
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. last — final
  9. key — the most important part
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. last — to go on
  12. season — in sport
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. last — finally
  16. pop — music
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. pop — soda
  19. key — for a lock
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. key — in music
  23. season — of the year
  24. bat — the animal

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