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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: chair · wound · bay · suit · content · swing · game · coach

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. wound — an injury
  4. suit — clothes
  5. swing — music
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. content — happy
  11. content — the amount
  12. swing — in golf
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. swing — to play on
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. wound — an injury
  17. chair — a leader
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. suit — in cards
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. suit — to fit
  23. game — wild animals
  24. game — a match

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