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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: fine · prune · file · cabinet · straw · staff · key · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — final
  3. staff — employees
  4. file — a document
  5. key — the most important part
  6. fine — all right
  7. prune — to trim
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. prune — to trim
  11. fine — high quality
  12. staff — a stick
  13. last — to go on
  14. staff — employees
  15. key — for a lock
  16. file — a tool
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. file — a line of people
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. key — in music
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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