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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: court · coach · march · mug · trunk · saw · deal · drill

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. court — for sport
  3. march — the month
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. drill — a practice
  6. mug — a cup
  7. saw — the tool
  8. court — of a king
  9. court — of law
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. saw — the tool
  16. march — the month
  17. deal — to handle
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. drill — the tool
  22. mug — a face
  23. march — music
  24. mug — to rob

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