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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: net · chip · cell · content · coach · stem · toast · drill

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. chip — to eat
  3. net — after costs
  4. chip — for betting
  5. drill — army training
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. stem — to come from
  13. toast — bread
  14. cell — in biology
  15. net — for catching
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. net — in sport
  19. content — happy
  20. cell — a phone
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. content — the amount
  24. content — videos and posts

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