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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: toast · arm · face · fan · bat · stock · cell · court

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. toast — bread
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. court — for sport
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. stock — shares
  9. cell — a phone
  10. face — to confront
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. face — part of the head
  13. court — of a king
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. court — of law
  20. face — to point toward
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cell — in biology
  24. arm — 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