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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: mate · craft · bat · coach · rule · face · shower · squash

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. face — to confront
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rule — government
  5. craft — boats
  6. squash — the sport
  7. mate — to breed
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. mate — a partner
  10. rule — a law
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. face — part of the head
  15. face — to point toward
  16. craft — a skill
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — rain
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. mate — a friend

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