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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 120 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. march — music
  4. hand — help
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. chair — a leader
  7. spell — magic
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. hand — in cards
  11. firm — steady
  12. spell — letters
  13. spell — a short time
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. firm — decided
  16. march — the month
  17. bat — the animal
  18. chip — to eat
  19. march — the month
  20. cell — a phone
  21. chip — for betting
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. firm — a company

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