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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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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: cold · ball · trunk · coach · pitch · ruler · last · toast

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  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. toast — the most admired
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. last — finally
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. cold — not warm
  8. last — final
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. last — to go on
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. cold — an illness
  17. pitch — completely
  18. ball — a great time
  19. toast — bread
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ball — a round shape
  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