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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 · race · last · rest · perch · capital · land · foot

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. perch — the fish
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. rest — what's left
  6. last — finally
  7. land — ground
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. last — final
  10. capital — money
  11. race — a contest
  12. rest — a break
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. race — humankind
  17. capital — a city
  18. foot — a measure
  19. last — to go on
  20. rest — what's left
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. race — the arms race
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — a country

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