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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. ball — a great time
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. bass — the fish
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. row — to paddle
  9. ball — a dance
  10. row — a line
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. vault — a safe
  13. mug — a cup
  14. spring — the season
  15. mug — to rob
  16. clip — to cut
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — a video
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. bass — low music
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. mug — a face

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