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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: rush · staff · stick · last · bat · spring · cabinet · swing

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. staff — employees
  8. spring — of water
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. bat — the animal
  11. last — to go on
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. rush — hurry
  14. swing — music
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. swing — to play on
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. spring — the season
  19. swing — in golf
  20. staff — a stick
  21. last — final
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. last — finally
  24. rush — a thrill

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