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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: march · dip · hand · cell · bowl · cap · bat · board

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bat — the animal
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. march — music
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. board — to get on
  8. board — a committee
  9. cell — in biology
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. dip — to sink
  13. hand — help
  14. cell — a phone
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. cap — of ice
  18. march — the month
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. cap — a lid
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. cap — a hat

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