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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: game · rest · season · coach · chest · bowl · fork · lean

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. chest — of your body
  5. lean — thin
  6. rest — a break
  7. rest — what's left
  8. season — of the year
  9. chest — a box
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. game — wild animals
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. rest — what's left
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. game — a match
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. fork — in a road
  24. lean — to bend

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