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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: plane · rash · coach · scale · swing · court · shower · stand

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. court — for sport
  5. shower — to wash
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. plane — a tool
  10. swing — music
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. rash — a series
  13. swing — in golf
  14. court — of a king
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. stand — to bear
  17. scale — in music
  18. court — of law
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. swing — to play on
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. rash — hasty
  24. shower — rain

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