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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: lie · wave · pitcher · race · degree · bat · ball · cell

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. cell — in biology
  3. degree — an amount
  4. ball — a great time
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. race — the arms race
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. race — humankind
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. ball — a dance
  16. lie — to recline
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — from a university
  19. race — a contest
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bat — the animal

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