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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: mate · object · bat · fall · drill · coach · face · cabinet

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  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. mate — to breed
  2. face — to confront
  3. object — a thing
  4. fall — to drop
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mate — a friend
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. object — an aim
  14. face — part of the head
  15. face — to point toward
  16. object — to protest
  17. fall — the season
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — a practice
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. drill — army training
  22. bat — the animal
  23. mate — a partner
  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