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

Word bank: craft · coach · racket · straw · chest · wind

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  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. coach — a trainer
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. wind — moving air
  4. craft — a skill
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wind — moving air
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. chest — of your body
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. craft — boats
  17. chest — a box
  18. coach — pulled by horses

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