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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
468
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: content · cabinet · last · rush · mark · hand · stem · bat

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. stem — to come from
  6. content — happy
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. hand — help
  10. last — to go on
  11. hand — in cards
  12. last — finally
  13. mark — a grade
  14. rush — hurry
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. content — the amount
  17. mark — a trace
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. bat — the animal
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. last — final

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