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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. season — of the year
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — in biology
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. season — in sport
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. saw — the tool
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. pound — a weight
  24. saw — the tool

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