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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bank — of a river
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — the animal
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — in golf
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. spring — a coil
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. swing — music
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. spring — of water
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bank — for money
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. spring — the season
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. bank — for money

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