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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
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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: wake · lie · coach · wound · capital · key · stock · chest

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. chest — of your body
  5. lie — to recline
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. key — the most important part
  10. key — for a lock
  11. stock — goods
  12. chest — a box
  13. stock — shares
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. capital — money
  17. wound — an injury
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. capital — a city
  21. wound — an injury
  22. key — in music
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. coach — a trainer

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