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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: date · bat · bore · perch · coach · rule · rash · spring

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  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 — the season
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bore — to drill
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. date — the fruit
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. rule — a law
  13. rule — government
  14. spring — of water
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rash — a series
  17. bore — to tire
  18. perch — the fish
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. bat — the animal
  21. rash — hasty
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. rule — to rule out
  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