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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: key · clip · cabinet · press · scale · club · rest · last

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. clip — to cut
  5. last — final
  6. key — for a lock
  7. key — in music
  8. rest — what's left
  9. club — a group
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. scale — size or range
  12. clip — a video
  13. rest — what's left
  14. last — finally
  15. key — the most important part
  16. club — for dancing
  17. press — newspapers
  18. club — for golf
  19. scale — in music
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. clip — for paper
  22. last — to go on
  23. press — a publisher
  24. press — to push

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