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

Word bank: craft · bay · stand · bat · fall · cell

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. stand — to bear
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. fall — the season
  6. cell — a phone
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bat — the animal
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. craft — a skill
  12. craft — boats
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. fall — to drop
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. cell — in biology
  18. bay — to keep at bay

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