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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.

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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: stem · bear · coach · spell · rush · straw · rash · squash

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — a short time
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. rush — hurry
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. squash — to crush
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. bear — the animal
  13. spell — letters
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stem — to come from
  17. rash — hasty
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. bear — the animal
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. squash — the sport
  24. rash — a series

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