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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. capital — money
  3. track — a path
  4. track — to keep track
  5. tear — to rip
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. land — ground
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. track — a song
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. cue — for pool
  14. tear — from crying
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. capital — a city
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. land — a country
  19. cue — a signal
  20. cue — a hint
  21. tear — from crying
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. land — to come down
  24. racket — for tennis

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