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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. ball — a dance
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. game — wild animals
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. perch — the fish
  11. sharp — clever
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. ball — a great time
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. game — a match
  24. sharp — with an edge

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