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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 116 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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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: swing · chair · race · coach · rest · wax · field · charge

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. rest — a break
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. rest — what's left
  5. swing — in golf
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. swing — music
  8. rest — what's left
  9. swing — to play on
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — the arms race
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. field — a subject
  17. chair — a leader
  18. charge — a price
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — for sport
  21. wax — to grow
  22. charge — electricity
  23. race — humankind
  24. charge — in control

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