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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. spell — magic
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chip — to eat
  5. mate — to breed
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. land — ground
  8. capital — a city
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. spell — letters
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. chip — for betting
  13. mate — a friend
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. land — to come down
  17. capital — money
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. mate — a partner
  23. land — a country
  24. spell — a short time

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