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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: hand · bat · cell · jam · roll · racket · foot · wake

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  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. roll — on a roll
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. cell — in biology
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wake — a trail
  7. hand — in cards
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. roll — a cake
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. hand — help
  16. roll — a list
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. foot — a measure
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. cell — a phone
  23. foot — part of the body
  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