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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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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: present · bank · court · cue · bore · bat · chest · cabinet

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. chest — of your body
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. bore — to tire
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bank — for money
  8. cue — a hint
  9. bank — of a river
  10. present — there
  11. court — for sport
  12. chest — a box
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. court — of law
  15. cue — for pool
  16. bore — to drill
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. court — of a king
  19. present — a gift
  20. present — the time now
  21. bank — for money
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bat — the animal
  24. cue — a signal

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