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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: chair · coach · rash · vault · bank · kick · chest · march

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. chest — of your body
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. vault — a safe
  8. chair — a leader
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — hasty
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. bank — for money
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — a box
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bank — for money
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. march — the month
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. rash — a series
  24. kick — in football

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