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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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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 · trunk · mark · straw · bat · calf · toast · mate

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. cell — in biology
  4. mark — a trace
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. mate — a partner
  8. toast — bread
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. cell — a phone
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. mark — a grade
  24. mate — a friend

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