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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. rush — hurry
  4. last — final
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. last — finally
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. last — to go on
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. fork — in a road
  16. wind — moving air
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. rush — a thrill

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