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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: coach · cold · nail · lie · dip · perch · fall · court

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. court — for sport
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. fall — to drop
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. perch — the fish
  10. cold — not warm
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. lie — to recline
  16. cold — an illness
  17. court — of a king
  18. dip — to sink
  19. fall — to drop
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. court — of law
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. fall — the season

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