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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 116 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: land · bat · cell · cabinet · charge · staff · rest · file

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. staff — employees
  3. rest — what's left
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bat — the animal
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. charge — a price
  11. staff — a stick
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. charge — electricity
  15. land — ground
  16. charge — in control
  17. staff — employees
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. file — a document
  21. land — to come down
  22. rest — a break
  23. file — a tool
  24. land — a country

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