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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 120 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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. game — wild animals
  4. squash — to crush
  5. bore — to tire
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. court — for sport
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — a practice
  10. game — a match
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. bore — to drill
  14. squash — the sport
  15. drill — army training
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. court — of law
  18. deal — to handle
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. court — of a king
  24. coach — a trainer

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