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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. tube — a container
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. drill — army training
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. kid — child
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. drill — a practice
  12. stand — to bear
  13. kid — to tease
  14. tube — the underground
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — the fish
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. perch — for a bird

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