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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 · wind · fine · spring · racket · bat · prune · present

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. present — the time now
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — the season
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. present — a gift
  12. prune — to trim
  13. spring — of water
  14. fine — high quality
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. prune — to trim
  22. present — there
  23. fine — all right
  24. cabinet — ministers

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