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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: cabinet · fall · chair · key · cap · row · last · net

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. row — a line
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. cap — a lid
  5. last — finally
  6. key — the most important part
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. last — to go on
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. chair — a leader
  13. key — in music
  14. net — in sport
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cap — a hat
  17. fall — the season
  18. net — after costs
  19. last — final
  20. net — for catching
  21. fall — to drop
  22. row — to paddle
  23. fall — to drop
  24. key — for a lock

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