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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. stem — to come from
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. drill — army training
  5. toast — bread
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. bear — the animal
  8. ground — a position
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bound — obliged
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bound — tied together
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bound — certain
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. coach — a trainer

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