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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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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: cold · coach · roll · safe · fan · prune · last · jam

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. roll — a list
  4. last — to go on
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. prune — to trim
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. cold — not warm
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. last — final
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. roll — a cake
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. prune — to trim

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