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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.

Make a worksheet

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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. charge — a price
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. charge — electricity
  8. mine — for digging
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. swing — music
  14. swing — to play on
  15. branch — a division
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. charge — in control
  18. swing — in golf

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