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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. lie — to recline
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. squash — the sport
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. cell — in biology
  13. band — a music group
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. bat — the animal
  16. mark — a grade
  17. stand — to bear
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. squash — to crush
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. band — a ring
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. hide — animal skin

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