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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. file — a tool
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. file — a document
  7. mate — to breed
  8. file — a line of people
  9. mate — a partner
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. squash — the sport
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. last — finally
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. last — final
  17. last — to go on
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. mate — a friend
  20. rash — a series
  21. squash — to crush
  22. rash — hasty
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. plane — a tool

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