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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. file — a tool
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. file — a document
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. craft — boats
  9. rush — hurry
  10. craft — a skill
  11. pop — soda
  12. capital — a city
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pop — to visit
  17. pop — music
  18. capital — money
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. stand — to bear
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. coach — a trainer

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