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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: capital · coach · chair · rash · track · wake · saw · squash

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. squash — the sport
  5. squash — to crush
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. capital — money
  9. track — a path
  10. wake — a trail
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. chair — a leader
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. track — a song
  18. capital — a city
  19. rash — a series
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. saw — the tool
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. track — to keep track
  24. rash — hasty

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