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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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — for catching
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. squash — the sport
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. tube — a container
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. cold — not warm
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. squash — to crush
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. net — after costs

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