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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. rest — a break
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. cold — an illness
  6. kid — child
  7. rest — what's left
  8. drill — a practice
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. rest — what's left
  12. toast — bread
  13. present — a gift
  14. drill — the tool
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. present — the time now
  17. rush — hurry
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. cold — not warm
  20. present — there
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. kid — to tease

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