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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. degree — from a university
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. degree — temperature
  7. file — a document
  8. board — to get on
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bound — certain
  12. file — a line of people
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. saw — the tool
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bound — obliged
  18. board — a committee
  19. saw — the tool
  20. degree — an amount
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. dip — to sink
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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