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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 124 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cue — a signal
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. spring — a coil
  8. cue — a hint
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. cue — for pool
  16. spring — the season
  17. cold — an illness
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. spring — of water
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. stem — to come from
  24. cold — the Cold War

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