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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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. bound — certain
  4. game — a match
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. bound — obliged
  10. pass — a permit
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. track — to keep track
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. degree — an amount
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. bound — tied together
  20. track — a song
  21. game — wild animals
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. track — a path

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