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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: bank · firm · field · fall · coach · cold · last · drill

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bank — for money
  4. field — for sport
  5. fall — the season
  6. last — finally
  7. drill — army training
  8. cold — not warm
  9. fall — to drop
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. fall — to drop
  12. drill — a practice
  13. bank — of a river
  14. field — farmland
  15. bank — for money
  16. firm — a company
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. firm — decided
  19. field — a subject
  20. firm — steady
  21. last — final
  22. drill — the tool
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. last — to go on

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