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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. drill — a practice
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. cell — a phone
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. drill — the tool
  8. bass — low music
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. snap — to click
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. cell — in biology
  16. drill — army training
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. bass — the fish
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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