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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. cell — in biology
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. cell — a phone
  10. content — the amount
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. row — a line
  13. stand — to bear
  14. bass — low music
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bass — the fish
  18. row — to paddle
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. content — happy
  21. bat — the animal
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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