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

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. squash — the sport
  3. mate — a partner
  4. bat — the animal
  5. swing — to play on
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. mate — to breed
  10. squash — to crush
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a city
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. swing — in golf
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. cell — a phone
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. swing — music
  24. mate — a friend

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