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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: capital · deal · coach · nail · mate · drill · spell · chest

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. chest — of your body
  5. drill — a practice
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a partner
  8. spell — letters
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. chest — a box
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. drill — the tool
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. mate — a friend
  16. deal — to handle
  17. chest — of your body
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. spell — magic
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — money
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. drill — army training

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