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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: bat · ball · mate · cell · wake · wind · field · stand

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  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. stand — for spectators
  2. ball — a great time
  3. wind — moving air
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. wake — a trail
  6. field — for sport
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mate — a friend
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. stand — to bear
  14. field — a subject
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. mate — to breed
  18. cell — a phone
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. ball — a dance
  21. field — farmland
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. mate — a partner
  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