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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: bound · jam · bat · fork · coach · game · drill · mate

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. mate — a friend
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bound — certain
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. game — a match
  7. drill — army training
  8. mate — a partner
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bound — tied together
  12. game — wild animals
  13. mate — to breed
  14. fork — in a road
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bound — obliged
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. drill — a practice
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. fork — a garden tool

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