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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: coach · season · arm · content · game · lean · cap · date

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. cap — a lid
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — in sport
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to bend
  11. season — of the year
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. cap — a hat
  14. date — the fruit
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. game — a match
  20. content — the amount
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. content — happy
  24. lean — to rest against

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