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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. last — finally
  4. cell — in biology
  5. swing — to play on
  6. bat — the animal
  7. content — happy
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. swing — in golf
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. swing — music
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. last — to go on
  16. content — the amount
  17. cell — a phone
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. club — for dancing
  20. club — for golf
  21. club — a group
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. last — final
  24. content — videos and posts

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