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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: pitcher · cell · club · lie · toast · bay · straw · scale

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — for golf
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. cell — a phone
  6. club — a group
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. scale — size or range
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. scale — in music
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. toast — bread
  15. lie — to recline
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. cell — in biology

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