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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: content · cell · lash · ball · root · bowl · bat · swing

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. cell — a phone
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. root — of a plant
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. root — the cause
  9. content — happy
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. content — the amount
  12. cell — in biology
  13. root — of a word
  14. bat — the animal
  15. swing — to play on
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. swing — music
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. ball — a great time
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. swing — in golf
  23. ball — a dance
  24. bowl — a football final

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