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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. chest — a box
  3. squash — to crush
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. hand — in cards
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. fine — all right
  8. hand — help
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. chest — of your body
  12. fine — high quality
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. squash — the sport
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chair — a leader

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