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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: stem · race · pop · roll · coach · last · bank · chair

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. pop — soda
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. roll — a list
  6. last — finally
  7. last — to go on
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. last — final
  11. pop — music
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. bank — of a river
  15. roll — a cake
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. stem — to come from
  18. bank — for money
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. race — a contest
  21. pop — to visit
  22. race — humankind
  23. bank — for money
  24. race — the arms race

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