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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: wax · board · drill · chest · shower · capital · coach · net

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. net — in sport
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. drill — army training
  6. capital — a city
  7. net — after costs
  8. capital — money
  9. drill — a practice
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. chest — of your body
  12. board — a committee
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. net — for catching
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — rain
  19. chest — of your body
  20. wax — to grow
  21. drill — the tool
  22. shower — to wash
  23. board — to get on
  24. wax — for sculpting

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