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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 · rest · kid · fine · race · chair · fall · craft

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fall — the season
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. race — the arms race
  6. rest — what's left
  7. craft — boats
  8. race — a contest
  9. rest — what's left
  10. kid — to tease
  11. fall — to drop
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. kid — child
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. craft — a skill
  17. fine — all right
  18. fall — to drop
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. fine — high quality
  23. race — humankind
  24. rest — a break

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