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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: toast · wound · coach · pitcher · branch · bowl · fork · mine

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. toast — bread
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. wound — an injury
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. mine — for digging
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. wound — an injury
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. fork — in a road
  22. branch — a division
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. branch — of a bank

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