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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: cell · chair · lean · bowl · mine · stick · season · file

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. file — a tool
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. season — of the year
  10. lean — to bend
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. season — in sport
  13. cell — in biology
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. mine — for digging
  17. chair — a leader
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. file — a document
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. lean — thin
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. chair — to sit on

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