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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: bat · coach · tear · straw · pass · land · club · plane

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. club — a group
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. tear — from crying
  9. land — to come down
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. tear — to rip
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. plane — a tool
  15. bat — the animal
  16. land — a country
  17. tear — from crying
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. land — ground
  20. pass — a permit
  21. club — for golf
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. club — for dancing
  24. bat — for baseball

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