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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  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. perch — the fish
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. rash — hasty
  6. spell — a short time
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rush — hurry
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — an illness
  11. spell — letters
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. spell — magic
  23. pass — a permit
  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