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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: bowl · bark · coach · bore · chest · track · rush · leaves

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. rush — hurry
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. bore — to drill
  10. chest — of your body
  11. track — to keep track
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. chest — a box
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. track — a path
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bore — to tire
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. bark — to shout
  24. leaves — to go away

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