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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · root · pitch · cold · coach · mark · staff · drill

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. drill — the tool
  3. mine — for digging
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a word
  6. mark — a grade
  7. drill — army training
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. cold — an illness
  12. staff — employees
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. root — of a plant
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. pitch — completely
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. drill — a practice
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mark — a trace
  23. staff — employees
  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