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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. shower — to wash
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. charge — electricity
  8. cap — a hat
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. cap — of ice
  12. charge — in control
  13. band — a music group
  14. drill — army training
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. charge — a price
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cap — a lid
  21. shower — rain
  22. band — a ring
  23. drill — a practice
  24. racket — a loud noise

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