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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 120 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: wave · spring · coach · rash · game · last · mark · stick

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rash — hasty
  11. mark — a grade
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. last — finally
  15. spring — of water
  16. spring — a coil
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. spring — the season
  20. game — a match
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. last — to go on
  23. rash — a series
  24. mark — a trace

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