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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: chair · coach · staff · game · current · branch · mate · tear

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. chair — a leader
  4. current — of water
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. current — electric
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. branch — a division
  10. tear — from crying
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — a stick
  13. mate — a partner
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. current — happening now
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. tear — from crying
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. game — wild animals
  20. mate — a friend
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. mate — to breed
  23. staff — employees
  24. game — a match

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