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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. firm — decided
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. charge — in control
  7. bound — certain
  8. bound — tied together
  9. firm — steady
  10. bound — obliged
  11. mug — a face
  12. mug — a cup
  13. cell — in biology
  14. mug — to rob
  15. hand — in cards
  16. hand — help
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. firm — a company
  20. charge — a price
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. charge — electricity
  23. chest — of your body
  24. cell — a phone

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