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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's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. cue — a hint
  3. tube — a container
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. mate — a partner
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. tube — the underground
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. cue — for pool
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. shower — rain
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. bore — to drill
  18. mate — a friend
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. mate — to breed
  21. cue — a signal
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. bore — to tire
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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