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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 120 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: game · cabinet · spring · chair · bark · net · coach · bore

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. bore — to drill
  8. spring — the season
  9. chair — a leader
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bore — to tire
  15. game — wild animals
  16. game — a match
  17. bark — to shout
  18. net — after costs
  19. spring — of water
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. spring — a coil
  23. net — for catching
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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