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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: hide · rule · chest · wind · net · rush · straw · coach

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. wind — moving air
  3. rush — hurry
  4. chest — a box
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. chest — of your body
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. rule — a law
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rule — government
  17. wind — moving air
  18. net — for catching
  19. net — after costs
  20. net — in sport
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. chest — of your body

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