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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: row · club · roll · kid · coach · bore · chair · rest

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. roll — a list
  4. club — for golf
  5. rest — what's left
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — a leader
  8. bore — to drill
  9. kid — to tease
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. club — for dancing
  13. row — a line
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — to paddle
  19. rest — a break
  20. kid — child
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. rest — what's left
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. roll — a cake

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