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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 120 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 seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. rest — what's left
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. rest — what's left
  8. cell — in biology
  9. plane — a tool
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. rest — a break
  12. rash — hasty
  13. scale — size or range
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. cell — a phone
  16. wind — moving air
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. march — the month
  19. rash — a series
  20. march — the month
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. wind — moving air
  23. march — music
  24. scale — in music

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