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

Word bank: swing · firm · coach · perch · cold · rest · file · stick

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. perch — the fish
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. file — a document
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. file — a tool
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cold — not warm
  9. rest — what's left
  10. swing — in golf
  11. swing — to play on
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. swing — music
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. firm — a company
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rest — what's left
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. file — a line of people
  22. firm — steady
  23. firm — decided
  24. coach — a trainer

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