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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: rush · cold · present · ground · track · foot · coach · plane

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. rush — hurry
  3. foot — a measure
  4. plane — a tool
  5. present — a gift
  6. present — there
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. ground — a position
  9. track — to keep track
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. ground — crushed
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. track — a path
  17. ground — the earth
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. cold — not warm
  20. track — a song
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. foot — the bottom

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