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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 116 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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. cap — a lid
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. mark — a grade
  8. drill — army training
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. game — wild animals
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — a match
  14. present — a gift
  15. cap — of ice
  16. present — there
  17. mark — a trace
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stem — to come from
  20. drill — a practice
  21. cap — a hat
  22. pound — a weight
  23. drill — the tool
  24. present — the time now

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