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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 116 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: coach · bore · court · branch · hide · lean · rock · cold

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bore — to tire
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. rock — music
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — to bend
  10. branch — a division
  11. lean — thin
  12. rock — a stone
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. bore — to drill
  15. court — for sport
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. court — of law
  24. cold — an illness

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