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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. hand — help
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. land — ground
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. hand — in cards
  10. current — electric
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. land — a country
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. land — to come down
  15. mug — to rob
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. current — of water
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. current — happening now
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mug — a face
  24. mug — a cup

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