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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. track — a path
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. track — a song
  7. craft — a skill
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. craft — boats
  10. track — to keep track
  11. tube — the underground
  12. tube — a container
  13. prune — to trim
  14. row — a line
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. prune — to trim
  17. row — to paddle
  18. scale — in music
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. scale — size or range

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