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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: cabinet · staff · key · cap · roll · bat · row · stock

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. key — in music
  4. roll — a cake
  5. key — the most important part
  6. bat — the animal
  7. row — a line
  8. cap — of ice
  9. staff — employees
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. cap — a lid
  12. staff — a stick
  13. key — for a lock
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. stock — goods
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. cap — a hat
  18. staff — employees
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. row — to paddle
  21. roll — a list
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. stock — shares

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