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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. capital — money
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. swing — music
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. swing — to play on
  13. row — a line
  14. march — the month
  15. toast — bread
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. swing — in golf
  19. capital — a city
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. row — to paddle
  24. fan — to cool the air

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