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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. object — to protest
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. band — a ring
  6. row — a line
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. last — final
  11. spring — of water
  12. cell — in biology
  13. row — to paddle
  14. object — an aim
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. object — a thing
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. cell — a phone
  21. spring — the season
  22. band — a music group
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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