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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.

Make a worksheet

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: straw · spell · coach · rash · club · cell · dip · mine

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. cell — a phone
  5. spell — a short time
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. dip — to sink
  10. rash — hasty
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. club — for dancing
  14. spell — magic
  15. club — a group
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rash — a series
  20. mine — for digging
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — in biology
  23. spell — letters
  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