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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. club — for dancing
  3. fall — to drop
  4. ball — a great time
  5. club — a group
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wind — moving air
  8. land — ground
  9. fall — to drop
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. ball — a dance
  12. land — to come down
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. club — for golf
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. wind — moving air
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. land — a country
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. stem — to come from
  24. fall — the season

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