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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. fork — in a road
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. craft — boats
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. cold — not warm
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. craft — a skill
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — of the year
  24. craft — a handicraft

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