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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: cabinet · perch · patient · court · cue · hand · staff · last

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. court — for sport
  3. cue — for pool
  4. staff — employees
  5. court — of law
  6. staff — employees
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. last — final
  9. court — of a king
  10. cue — a hint
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cue — a signal
  15. last — finally
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. last — to go on
  19. staff — a stick
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. hand — in cards
  23. perch — the fish
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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