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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: coach · stock · wound · band · chair · foot · chest · fork

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. chest — of your body
  4. band — a music group
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. stock — shares
  7. wound — an injury
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. stock — goods
  13. chair — a leader
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. foot — a measure
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. band — a ring
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. fork — in a road

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