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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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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: chest · stem · racket · coach · last · pound · mate · cap

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. chest — a box
  4. last — final
  5. stem — to come from
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. mate — a partner
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. chest — of your body
  12. cap — of ice
  13. last — finally
  14. pound — a weight
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. cap — a lid
  19. mate — a friend
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. last — to go on
  22. cap — a hat
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — a loud noise

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