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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: swing · chair · coach · stock · mouse · pound · degree · chest

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. degree — an amount
  3. swing — in golf
  4. degree — temperature
  5. stock — goods
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. swing — to play on
  8. stock — shares
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. pound — a weight
  11. chest — of your body
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. degree — from a university
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. chair — a leader
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. chest — a box
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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