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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. file — a line of people
  4. mate — a partner
  5. rest — what's left
  6. file — a document
  7. kid — child
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. file — a tool
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — moving air
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. fine — high quality
  18. fine — all right
  19. mate — a friend
  20. mate — to breed
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. rest — a break
  23. kid — to tease
  24. rest — what's left

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