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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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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 · kick · field · staff · rest · straw · fork · cue

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. staff — employees
  4. cue — a hint
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. staff — employees
  8. kick — in football
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. fork — in a road
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. field — farmland
  16. cue — for pool
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. staff — a stick
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. field — a subject
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. rest — a break
  24. straw — dry grass

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