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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: coach · firm · spring · date · object · staff · chest · bark

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. bark — to shout
  3. staff — a stick
  4. chest — a box
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. firm — a company
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. staff — employees
  11. object — to protest
  12. object — a thing
  13. spring — the season
  14. firm — decided
  15. object — an aim
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. firm — steady
  18. date — the fruit
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — of water
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. staff — employees

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