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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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: wax · wind · chair · kick · net · coach

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. kick — in football
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. net — after costs
  10. wind — moving air
  11. net — in sport
  12. wax — to grow
  13. net — for catching
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. coach — pulled by horses

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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