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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: pass · season · cell · court · bat · arm · toast · land

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. land — a country
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. land — ground
  7. bat — the animal
  8. cell — in biology
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. toast — bread
  13. court — of law
  14. season — of the year
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. pass — a permit
  17. season — in sport
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. land — to come down
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. cell — a phone

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