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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: cell · kick · coach · fine · cold · straw · chest · leaves

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. kick — in football
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. chest — a box
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. fine — high quality
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. cell — a phone
  9. cell — in biology
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. fine — all right
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cold — not warm
  15. chest — of your body
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. cold — an illness
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. chest — of your body
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. straw — dry grass

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