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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 · roll · chest · squash · drill · mug · leaves · calf

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. chest — a box
  3. squash — the sport
  4. drill — the tool
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. mug — a face
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. drill — army training
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. roll — a list
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. roll — a cake
  14. squash — to crush
  15. mug — a cup
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mug — to rob
  19. drill — a practice
  20. bat — the animal
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. leaves — lets stay

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