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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: spell · straw · club · date · bat · bass · mate · chest

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. chest — a box
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bass — the fish
  8. bat — the animal
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. spell — a short time
  11. date — the fruit
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. spell — magic
  14. bass — low music
  15. club — for golf
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chest — of your body
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. club — a group
  21. spell — letters
  22. club — for dancing
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a partner

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