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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bat — the animal
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. file — a line of people
  8. cell — in biology
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. file — a tool
  13. degree — an amount
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. track — a path
  16. degree — temperature
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. track — a song
  19. degree — from a university
  20. file — a document
  21. track — to keep track
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. bat — in an idiom

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