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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: rush · degree · chest · coach · tube · board · ball · straw

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. ball — a dance
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. tube — a container
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. chest — of your body
  10. ball — a great time
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. board — a committee
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. degree — from a university
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. board — to get on
  18. chest — of your body
  19. tube — the underground
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. degree — temperature
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. rush — hurry
  24. degree — an amount

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