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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: chest · board · squash · coach · pitch · track · rash · season

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. board — a committee
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. season — in sport
  7. track — a path
  8. track — to keep track
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. rash — hasty
  11. chest — a box
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. board — to get on
  14. squash — to crush
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. rash — a series
  17. chest — of your body
  18. squash — the sport
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. season — of the year
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. track — a song
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. pitch — completely

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