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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.

Make a worksheet

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: chair · bay · coach · game · season · mate · face · land

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. season — in sport
  3. game — wild animals
  4. mate — a partner
  5. face — to confront
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. chair — a leader
  9. land — ground
  10. mate — to breed
  11. land — to come down
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. game — a match
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. season — of the year
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. mate — a friend
  22. face — part of the head
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. land — a country

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