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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: face · bark · press · chest · coach · stock · racket · fall

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fall — the season
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. fall — to drop
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. chest — a box
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. face — to point toward
  12. press — newspapers
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. face — part of the head
  15. stock — goods
  16. chest — of your body
  17. face — to confront
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bark — to shout
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. press — to push
  22. press — a publisher
  23. fall — to drop
  24. stock — shares

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