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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: coach · rule · bat · chest · ruler · cap

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. cap — a hat
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. rule — a law
  8. chest — of your body
  9. rule — government
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. cap — a lid
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cap — of ice
  17. bat — the animal
  18. chest — a box

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