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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. file — a tool
  3. tube — a container
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. season — of the year
  7. file — a document
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — crushed
  10. branch — a division
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bark — to shout
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. bulb — for light
  17. season — in sport
  18. tube — the underground
  19. ground — the earth
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. file — a line of people
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. bulb — for light

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