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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. spring — the season
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. fork — in a road
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. band — a ring
  9. spring — a coil
  10. prune — to trim
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. spring — of water
  16. band — a music group
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. wake — a trail
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. prune — to trim

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