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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 120 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. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. mug — to rob
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. kid — to tease
  6. mug — a cup
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. mug — a face
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. scale — in music
  14. bark — to shout
  15. scale — size or range
  16. lean — thin
  17. lean — to bend
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. squash — to crush
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. kid — child
  24. squash — the sport

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