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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. spring — a coil
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — letters
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. tube — a container
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. spell — a short time
  16. clip — for paper
  17. spring — the season
  18. wake — a trail
  19. tube — the underground
  20. clip — to cut
  21. spring — of water
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. deal — to handle
  24. clip — a video

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