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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
468
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: spring · toast · bank · clip · chip · staff · chair · coach

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. staff — employees
  4. clip — for paper
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. spring — the season
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chip — to eat
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. bank — for money
  14. spring — of water
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chip — for betting
  17. clip — a video
  18. spring — a coil
  19. bank — for money
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. clip — to cut
  22. staff — employees
  23. bank — of a river
  24. staff — a stick

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