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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: mark · squash · coach · clip · chair · last

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — for paper
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. last — final
  8. last — finally
  9. mark — a trace
  10. squash — to crush
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. last — to go on
  14. mark — a grade
  15. chair — a leader
  16. clip — a video
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. squash — the sport

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