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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: perch · cold · club · mine · plane · coach · land · pass

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. land — ground
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. pass — a permit
  11. club — for golf
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. club — for dancing
  15. land — to come down
  16. club — a group
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. cold — not warm
  19. plane — a tool
  20. perch — the fish
  21. mine — for digging
  22. cold — an illness
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. land — a country

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