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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 120 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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. file — a document
  6. tube — a container
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. file — a tool
  11. ball — a dance
  12. scale — size or range
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. scale — in music
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. file — a line of people
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. tube — the underground
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. ball — a great time
  24. straw — dry grass

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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