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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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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 · bear · drill · fall · content · stick · perch · straw

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. content — the amount
  5. drill — a practice
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. drill — the tool
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bear — the animal
  15. perch — the fish
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. drill — army training
  21. content — happy
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. bear — the animal
  24. fall — to drop

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