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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: coach · fork · foot · wave · kid · arm · row · spring

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  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. spring — a coil
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. row — to paddle
  5. row — a line
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. fork — in a road
  8. spring — of water
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. kid — child
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. foot — a measure
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. kid — to tease
  21. spring — the season
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — part of the body
  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