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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.

Words on the sheet
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: bowl · coach · squash · scale · saw · file · capital · lie

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. scale — in music
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. capital — money
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. squash — the sport
  10. lie — to recline
  11. file — a line of people
  12. scale — size or range
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. file — a document
  16. capital — a city
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. saw — the tool
  20. file — a tool
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. squash — to crush
  24. saw — the tool

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