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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: capital · foot · coach · track · hand · rush · jam · wax

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. foot — a measure
  5. track — a path
  6. capital — a city
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rush — hurry
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. track — to keep track
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. track — a song
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. hand — help
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. wax — to grow
  23. capital — money
  24. hand — in cards

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