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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: court · bear · cell · mark · fall · mug · hand · squash

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. fall — to drop
  6. mug — a cup
  7. squash — to crush
  8. mark — a trace
  9. squash — the sport
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — the season
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. court — of law
  14. court — for sport
  15. bear — the animal
  16. cell — a phone
  17. court — of a king
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. mug — to rob
  20. hand — help
  21. mark — a grade
  22. bear — the animal
  23. hand — in cards
  24. cell — in biology

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