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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 120 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pop — soda
  4. pop — music
  5. staff — employees
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. bat — the animal
  10. tear — from crying
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. pop — to visit
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — a stick
  17. band — a ring
  18. squash — the sport
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. tear — from crying
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. band — a music group

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