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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — obliged
  5. drill — the tool
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. march — the month
  9. drill — army training
  10. march — music
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. tube — a container
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. game — wild animals
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. march — the month
  19. game — a match
  20. drill — a practice
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. tube — the underground
  23. bound — tied together
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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