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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: mug · wake · stand · bat · cell · shower · drill · season

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. cell — a phone
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. mug — a face
  5. mug — to rob
  6. shower — rain
  7. wake — a trail
  8. shower — to wash
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. season — of the year
  11. season — in sport
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. drill — army training
  15. drill — a practice
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — the animal
  18. drill — the tool
  19. stand — to bear
  20. cell — in biology
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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