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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. rest — what's left
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. hand — help
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. land — a country
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. rest — what's left
  10. branch — a division
  11. swing — to play on
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. land — ground
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. rest — a break
  17. land — to come down
  18. swing — in golf
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. saw — the tool
  21. swing — music
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. hand — in cards
  24. saw — the tool

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