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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: coach · safe · chest · capital · wind · row · kick · object

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. object — to protest
  3. row — a line
  4. object — a thing
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. kick — in football
  7. capital — money
  8. chest — a box
  9. capital — a city
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. chest — of your body
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. object — an aim
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. wind — moving air
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. wind — moving air
  22. chest — of your body
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. coach — a trainer

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