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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 116 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 · cell · patient · cue · clip · ball · stand · mate

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. cue — for pool
  3. cue — a signal
  4. mate — a partner
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ball — a dance
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. stand — to bear
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. mate — a friend
  17. cell — in biology
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bat — the animal
  21. mate — to breed
  22. clip — to cut
  23. cue — a hint
  24. stand — on your feet

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