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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: staff · court · key · band · hide · stem · bat · last

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. band — a ring
  5. bat — the animal
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — final
  9. court — for sport
  10. staff — employees
  11. band — a music group
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. last — finally
  14. stem — to come from
  15. key — in music
  16. key — the most important part
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. key — for a lock
  19. staff — a stick
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. staff — employees
  22. court — of a king
  23. court — of law
  24. hide — animal skin

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