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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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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. file — a line of people
  5. season — of the year
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. file — a document
  9. rash — a series
  10. chair — a leader
  11. rash — hasty
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. file — a tool
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. lean — to bend
  19. toast — bread
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. lean — thin
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. season — in sport

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