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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. cell — a phone
  4. wind — moving air
  5. court — of a king
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. court — of law
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. last — finally
  14. court — for sport
  15. last — to go on
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — thin
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. cell — in biology
  24. last — final

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