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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: foot · branch · straw · kid · field · saw · spell · coach

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. kid — to tease
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. spell — a short time
  6. field — a subject
  7. spell — letters
  8. foot — a measure
  9. field — for sport
  10. saw — the tool
  11. kid — child
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. saw — the tool
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. spell — magic
  20. field — farmland
  21. branch — a division
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. foot — the bottom

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