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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 116 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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. rush — hurry
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. row — to paddle
  9. perch — the fish
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — low music
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. row — a line
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. cold — an illness

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