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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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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: chest · game · last · bat · lash · stem · deal · cell

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. chest — a box
  8. deal — to handle
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. last — final
  11. cell — a phone
  12. chest — of your body
  13. game — a match
  14. bat — the animal
  15. last — to go on
  16. cell — in biology
  17. game — wild animals
  18. last — finally
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. chest — of your 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