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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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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: coach · leaves · file · bat · wave · lean · club · arm

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. club — a group
  5. lean — thin
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. club — for golf
  8. bat — the animal
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. club — for dancing
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a line of people
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. lean — to rest against

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