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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. mark — a trace
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bank — for money
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bank — for money
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mark — a grade
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. cold — not warm
  16. bank — of a river
  17. prune — to trim
  18. court — of law
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pound — a weight

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