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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. perch — the fish
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. drill — army training
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. drill — the tool
  14. rush — hurry
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. pound — a weight
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. drill — a practice
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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