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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. swing — to play on
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. mate — a partner
  5. court — of law
  6. court — of a king
  7. mate — to breed
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. row — a line
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. swing — in golf
  13. court — for sport
  14. bat — the animal
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. row — to paddle
  22. swing — music
  23. mate — a friend
  24. row — a quarrel

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