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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. cell — a phone
  3. lie — to recline
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. can — to be able to
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. can — a tin
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. can — a tin
  16. kick — in football
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. cell — in biology
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. pitcher — a jug

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