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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: roll · mate · bat · foot · arm · season · court · tube

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. bat — the animal
  3. court — for sport
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. season — of the year
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. court — of law
  10. season — in sport
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. mate — a friend
  13. roll — a cake
  14. tube — the underground
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. tube — a container
  18. mate — a partner
  19. court — of a king
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. mate — to breed
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. foot — a measure

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