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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bowl · cell · straw · pitch · mug · kid

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. mug — a face
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — a phone
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — completely
  10. mug — a cup
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — to tease
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. mug — to rob
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. straw — dry grass

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