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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 120 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bore — to drill
  4. court — of law
  5. bass — low music
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. bore — to tire
  10. row — a line
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. row — to paddle
  13. bass — the fish
  14. key — for a lock
  15. key — the most important part
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. court — of a king
  18. court — for sport
  19. track — to keep track
  20. key — in music
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. track — a path
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. bass — the instrument

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