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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. branch — a division
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. hand — in cards
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. tear — from crying
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. hand — help
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. tear — to rip
  24. pitcher — a jug

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