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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. drill — a practice
  4. cell — in biology
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. cell — a phone
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. chest — of your body
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. chest — a box
  13. mark — a trace
  14. stand — to bear
  15. mark — a grade
  16. chest — of your body
  17. drill — the tool
  18. drill — army training

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