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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cold — not warm
  5. present — a gift
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — the arms race
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. present — the time now
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. cold — an illness
  16. race — a contest
  17. present — there
  18. cold — the Cold War

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