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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: bat · cell · season · straw · rush · hand · saw · bowl

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. cell — a phone
  3. hand — help
  4. season — of the year
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. cell — in biology
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. hand — in cards
  9. season — in sport
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bat — the animal
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. saw — the tool
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. rush — hurry

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