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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: coach · track · hand · roll · wind · kick · chair · nail

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. track — a song
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. track — to keep track
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. roll — a cake
  9. chair — a leader
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. roll — a list
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. track — a path
  16. hand — help
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. wind — moving air
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. hand — in cards
  24. kick — in football

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