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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. spell — a short time
  3. mate — a friend
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. spell — magic
  7. key — in music
  8. mate — to breed
  9. fine — high quality
  10. spell — letters
  11. mate — a partner
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fine — all right
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. key — the most important part
  17. bat — the animal
  18. swing — in golf
  19. saw — the tool
  20. swing — music
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. key — for a lock
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bat — in an idiom

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