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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: staff · hand · racket · cabinet · net · cell · rule · tear

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. tear — to rip
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. staff — a stick
  6. tear — from crying
  7. staff — employees
  8. hand — in cards
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. rule — government
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. tear — from crying
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — after costs
  16. staff — employees
  17. hand — help
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. rule — a law
  22. cell — a phone
  23. net — in sport
  24. cell — in biology

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