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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. bass — low music
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. clip — a video
  5. bass — the fish
  6. staff — employees
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — a partner
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. staff — employees
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. key — the most important part
  14. staff — a stick
  15. mate — to breed
  16. key — in music
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — a weight
  20. mine — for digging
  21. clip — for paper
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. key — for a lock
  24. bass — the instrument

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