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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. cell — a phone
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ball — a great time
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. face — to confront
  11. bat — the animal
  12. ball — a dance
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. drill — the tool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. face — to point toward
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. cell — in biology
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. face — part of the head
  23. drill — army training
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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