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

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. cue — a hint
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bass — low music
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. mug — to rob
  7. cue — a signal
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a tool
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. shower — to wash
  12. rock — music
  13. mine — for digging
  14. shower — rain
  15. cue — for pool
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. rock — a stone
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. mug — a cup
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. file — a line of people
  24. mug — a face

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