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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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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 · craft · suit · chip · last · roll · wound

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. wound — an injury
  4. roll — a cake
  5. suit — to fit
  6. chip — for betting
  7. cell — a phone
  8. last — to go on
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. roll — a list
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. last — finally
  13. last — final
  14. chip — to eat
  15. cell — in biology
  16. craft — a skill
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bat — the animal
  19. wound — an injury
  20. craft — boats
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. suit — in cards

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