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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. file — a tool
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. hand — help
  6. pop — music
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. pop — to visit
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. file — a document
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. pop — soda
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. hand — in cards
  18. straw — a straw man

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