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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: date · coach · wake · fall · face · bear · pit · pound

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  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. coach — pulled by horses
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. face — part of the head
  7. date — the fruit
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. bear — the animal
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pit — in a race
  16. pit — a hole
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. wake — a trail
  20. face — to confront
  21. bear — the animal
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  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