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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: pitcher · club · snap · spring · coach · ruler · rush · file

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — of water
  4. club — for golf
  5. snap — to click
  6. rush — hurry
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. file — a tool
  11. club — a group
  12. spring — a coil
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. file — a line of people
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. file — a document
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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