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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.

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: bass · chest · coach · mine · date · fork · foot · last

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — for digging
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. last — to go on
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. chest — of your body
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fork — in a road
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. last — finally
  18. last — final
  19. date — the fruit
  20. bass — low music
  21. chest — a box
  22. bass — the fish
  23. foot — a measure
  24. chest — of your body

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