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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fall · coach · kick · last · perch · rash · band · leaves

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. band — a ring
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. fall — to drop
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. rash — hasty
  15. last — final
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — in football
  18. fall — the season
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. rash — a series
  21. last — to go on
  22. band — a music group
  23. last — finally
  24. perch — the fish

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