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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: pitcher · spring · bat · cell · club · cabinet · saw · mug

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. spring — the season
  4. mug — a face
  5. club — for dancing
  6. spring — a coil
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. cell — a phone
  9. mug — to rob
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. spring — of water
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. club — a group
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. mug — a cup
  16. cell — in biology
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bat — the animal
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. club — for golf
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — the tool

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