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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.

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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: mark · coach · wax · foot · rash · perch · last · spring

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. foot — a measure
  5. mark — a trace
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. last — final
  8. last — to go on
  9. mark — a grade
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. perch — the fish
  12. rash — a series
  13. wax — to grow
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. spring — of water
  20. spring — a coil
  21. last — finally
  22. spring — the season
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. rash — on the skin

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