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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: fork · coach · spell · chair · race · wake · shower · scale

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. scale — in music
  3. shower — rain
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — magic
  9. scale — size or range
  10. spell — a short time
  11. chair — a leader
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — humankind
  17. fork — in a road
  18. wake — a trail
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. shower — to wash
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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