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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: drill · degree · toast · coach · fall · cabinet · bass · perch

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. degree — from a university
  4. fall — to drop
  5. toast — bread
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. perch — the fish
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. degree — temperature
  12. drill — army training
  13. bass — the fish
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. bass — low music
  19. degree — an amount
  20. fall — the season
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. drill — the tool
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. drill — a practice

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