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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: racket · perch · wind · coach · root · craft · cold · mouse

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. cold — not warm
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. root — of a plant
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. perch — the fish
  10. root — of a word
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. craft — boats
  14. craft — a skill
  15. cold — an illness
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. root — the cause
  18. wind — moving air
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. perch — for a bird

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