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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. spell — letters
  4. march — the month
  5. ball — a dance
  6. spell — magic
  7. mine — for digging
  8. hand — help
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. ball — a great time
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. firm — a company
  16. march — music
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. firm — decided
  19. spell — a short time
  20. hand — in cards
  21. firm — steady
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. march — the month

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