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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. file — a line of people
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. spring — of water
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. land — a country
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. suit — in cards
  9. suit — to fit
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. spring — the season
  12. file — a document
  13. suit — clothes
  14. land — to come down
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. land — ground
  23. file — a tool
  24. racket — for tennis

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