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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bank — of a river
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bat — the animal
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pitch — completely
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. bank — for money
  13. cell — a phone
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. cue — for pool
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — to eat
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. cue — a signal
  23. bank — for money
  24. pitch — a sports field

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