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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cell · chest · spell · degree · coach · nail · tube · club

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  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. club — a group
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. degree — from a university
  5. club — for golf
  6. spell — letters
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. spell — magic
  11. tube — the underground
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. tube — a container
  15. degree — an amount
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. club — for dancing
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. degree — temperature
  20. spell — a short time
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — a phone
  23. tube — in a tire
  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