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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. club — for golf
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. club — for dancing
  7. cell — in biology
  8. club — a group
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. season — of the year
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. pass — a permit
  15. face — part of the head
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. plane — a tool
  18. face — to confront
  19. bat — the animal
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. face — to point toward
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. season — in sport

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