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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. stem — to come from
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. content — happy
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bat — the animal
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. content — the amount
  16. board — a committee
  17. roll — a cake
  18. roll — a list
  19. board — to get on
  20. cell — a phone
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. cell — in biology
  24. stem — a stem cell

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