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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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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: swing · mate · present · band · bat · craft · cell · rest

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. present — there
  3. band — a ring
  4. present — a gift
  5. swing — in golf
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. cell — in biology
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. present — the time now
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. craft — a skill
  15. swing — music
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. swing — to play on
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. mate — to breed
  21. bat — the animal
  22. mate — a friend
  23. craft — boats
  24. band — a music group

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