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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 · cue · drill · lie · capital · straw · mate · stem

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. bat — the animal
  3. cue — a signal
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. mate — to breed
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. capital — money
  14. mate — a partner
  15. lie — to recline
  16. cue — a hint
  17. cue — for pool
  18. capital — a city
  19. mate — a friend
  20. drill — a practice
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. drill — the tool
  23. stem — to come from
  24. bat — in an idiom

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