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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: last · coach · jam · land · swing · ruler · wake · fall

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. land — to come down
  5. swing — music
  6. land — ground
  7. land — a country
  8. fall — to drop
  9. wake — a trail
  10. last — final
  11. fall — the season
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. last — to go on
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. last — finally
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — to play on
  24. jam — a tight spot

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