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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. land — to come down
  3. chest — of your body
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. drill — army training
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. drill — a practice
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. row — a line
  13. land — ground
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — the cause
  16. key — for a lock
  17. key — the most important part
  18. land — a country
  19. root — of a plant
  20. key — in music
  21. row — to paddle
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  24. drill — the tool

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