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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: drill · chip · kid · prune · spell · stick · cap · coach

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — for betting
  4. prune — to trim
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. spell — a short time
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. prune — to trim
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. cap — a lid
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. drill — the tool
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. drill — army training
  16. kid — to tease
  17. spell — magic
  18. cap — of ice
  19. drill — a practice
  20. spell — letters
  21. cap — a hat
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. kid — child
  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