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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.

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: fan · game · bark · rest · cell · coach · tube · net

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. cell — in biology
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. tube — a container
  8. tube — the underground
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. game — wild animals
  11. rest — a break
  12. bark — to shout
  13. game — a match
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. net — in sport
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rest — what's left
  18. cell — a phone
  19. net — after costs
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. net — for catching
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. coach — a trainer

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