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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
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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 · key · coach · wake · chest · roll · chip · land

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. land — to come down
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. roll — a cake
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. key — in music
  8. key — the most important part
  9. chest — a box
  10. chip — to eat
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. chip — for betting
  14. wake — a trail
  15. land — ground
  16. game — wild animals
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — a match
  19. land — a country
  20. chest — of your body
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. roll — a list
  24. key — for a lock

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