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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: coach · leaves · prune · chip · spell · current · cold · chair

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. prune — to trim
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. current — electric
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. cold — an illness
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. spell — magic
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. chair — a leader
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. current — of water
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. cold — not warm
  16. chip — to eat
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. spell — letters
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. current — happening now
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. chip — for betting
  24. prune — to trim

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