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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. cue — a signal
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. bat — the animal
  6. file — a tool
  7. mine — for digging
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. file — a document
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. board — to get on
  14. cue — a hint
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. board — a committee
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. cue — for pool
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. mine — belonging to me

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