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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: cell · squash · last · rule · bat · tube · mate · board

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. rule — government
  3. tube — a container
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. board — a committee
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — the animal
  9. last — final
  10. tube — the underground
  11. mate — a partner
  12. board — to get on
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. mate — to breed
  15. mate — a friend
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. squash — the sport
  18. last — finally
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — a phone
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. squash — to crush
  24. rule — a law

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