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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pop — soda
  6. tube — a container
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. cap — a lid
  10. pop — to visit
  11. cap — a hat
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. kick — in football
  14. cap — of ice
  15. branch — a division
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. pop — music
  19. sharp — clever
  20. perch — the fish
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. kick — with a leg

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