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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 120 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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. shower — to wash
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. club — for dancing
  7. kid — child
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — rain
  12. kid — to tease
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. club — for golf
  16. stand — to bear
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. club — a group

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