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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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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: cold · charge · file · bat · plane · racket · coach · ruler

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. charge — electricity
  4. charge — a price
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. file — a document
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. cold — an illness
  9. file — a tool
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. cold — not warm
  13. file — a line of people
  14. charge — in control
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. plane — a tool
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. bat — the animal

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