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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 116 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. mine — for digging
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rock — music
  5. bass — the fish
  6. saw — the tool
  7. file — a tool
  8. vault — a safe
  9. root — of a word
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. rock — a stone
  15. bass — low music
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. root — of a plant
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. saw — the tool
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. root — the cause
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a document

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