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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.

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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 · prune · cabinet · bat · toast · row · jam · stick

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. toast — bread
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. row — a line
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. key — the most important part
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. key — for a lock
  17. row — to paddle
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. prune — to trim
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. prune — to trim
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. key — in music

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