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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: branch · fall · coach · kick · wave · rash · chair · chest

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. fall — the season
  5. kick — in football
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — a leader
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. branch — a division
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. fall — to drop
  14. chest — of your body
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. rash — hasty
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. fall — to drop
  20. chest — of your body
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. chest — a box

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