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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: mine · coach · chest · bat · arm · bank · fork · mouse

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. chest — of your body
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bank — for money
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. fork — in a road
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bat — the animal
  11. chest — a box
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. bank — for money
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. mine — for digging
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. bank — of a river
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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