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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: cold · last · saw · perch · object · pitcher · coach · staff

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. last — finally
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. object — to protest
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. last — to go on
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. staff — a stick
  15. staff — employees
  16. object — a thing
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cold — an illness
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. cold — not warm
  21. saw — the tool
  22. last — final
  23. object — an aim
  24. staff — employees

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