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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 120 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: cell · tube · club · mug · rock · cap · lie · bat

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. cell — in biology
  4. club — for dancing
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. rock — a stone
  7. tube — the underground
  8. cap — a hat
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. cap — a lid
  11. mug — a cup
  12. lie — to recline
  13. cell — a phone
  14. mug — to rob
  15. bat — the animal
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. club — a group
  18. mug — a face
  19. cap — of ice
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. rock — music
  22. tube — a container
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. club — for golf

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