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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 116 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: track · cell · coach · tube · bowl · rule · court · mate

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. track — a path
  4. court — of law
  5. track — a song
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. tube — the underground
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. rule — a law
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. cell — in biology
  13. mate — a partner
  14. mate — to breed
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — a container
  18. rule — government
  19. court — for sport
  20. cell — a phone
  21. court — of a king
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. mate — a friend
  24. track — to keep track

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