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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: shower · pitcher · coach · roll · mark · chair

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  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 leader
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. mark — a trace
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. shower — to wash
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. roll — a cake
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. roll — a list
  16. shower — rain
  17. pitcher — a jug
  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