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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: mouse · chest · bat · face · mate · land · straw · bulb

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. face — to point toward
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mate — to breed
  7. land — ground
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bulb — for light
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. mate — a friend
  13. face — to confront
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. bat — the animal
  16. mate — a partner
  17. land — a country
  18. bulb — for light
  19. face — part of the head
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. land — to come down
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. straw — a straw man

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