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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 the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. spring — of water
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. bass — the fish
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. rash — a series
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. spring — the season
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. rash — hasty
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. bass — low music
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. spring — a coil
  24. stand — to bear

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