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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  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. fall — the season
  3. row — to paddle
  4. cell — a phone
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. cell — in biology
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. wake — a trail
  10. row — a line
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. fall — to drop
  14. craft — a skill
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. court — for sport
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. craft — boats
  20. court — of a king
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. fall — to drop
  23. court — of law
  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