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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. cell — a phone
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. cap — a lid
  8. mate — to breed
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. cap — a hat
  16. mate — a partner
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. cell — in biology
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. mate — a friend
  24. bulb — of a plant

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