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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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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: leaves · coach · mate · arm · shower · stock · bat · lie

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. stock — shares
  4. shower — to wash
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. lie — to recline
  9. shower — rain
  10. mate — a friend
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bat — the animal
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. mate — to breed
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. stock — goods
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. arm — part of the body

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