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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: fan · coach · fine · chair · roll · spring · pitch · file

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. file — a document
  5. fine — all right
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. roll — a list
  10. file — a line of people
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. spring — of water
  13. chair — a leader
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. file — a tool
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. spring — the season
  20. pitch — completely
  21. fine — high quality
  22. spring — a coil
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. chair — a professorship

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