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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: land · lie · mouse · cell · fine · bat · hand · spell

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. cell — a phone
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. land — a country
  7. land — ground
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. fine — high quality
  11. lie — to recline
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. spell — magic
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. cell — in biology
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. fine — all right
  19. land — to come down
  20. hand — help
  21. spell — a short time
  22. hand — in cards
  23. spell — letters
  24. hand — part of the body

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