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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. hand — in cards
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cold — not warm
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. cold — an illness
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. ball — a great time
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — music
  13. hand — help
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. ball — a dance
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. swing — in golf

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