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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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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: chair · perch · coach · jam · press · cell

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. cell — in biology
  3. chair — a leader
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. press — to push
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. press — newspapers
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. cell — a phone
  15. perch — the fish
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. coach — a trainer

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