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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.

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 · shower · fan · mouse · scale · coach · drill · field

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. shower — rain
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. drill — a practice
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — size or range
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. field — a subject
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. field — farmland
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. drill — army training
  17. drill — the tool
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. perch — the fish
  21. scale — in music
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. field — for sport
  24. coach — a trainer

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