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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. cold — an illness
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. cell — a phone
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. cell — in biology
  14. vault — a safe
  15. suit — in cards
  16. suit — to fit
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. content — the amount
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. content — happy
  23. cold — not warm
  24. suit — clothes

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