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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: cell · suit · rush · cabinet · key · sharp · bat · bark

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. rush — hurry
  3. key — the most important part
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bat — the animal
  11. cell — a phone
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. suit — clothes
  14. key — for a lock
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. sharp — clever
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — in biology
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bark — to shout
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. suit — in cards
  23. key — in music
  24. bat — for baseball

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