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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: lash · tube · ball · coach · patient · cold · chair · spell

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. ball — a great time
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. chair — a leader
  7. tube — the underground
  8. ball — a dance
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. spell — letters
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. cold — not warm
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. spell — magic
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. cold — an illness
  21. spell — a short time
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. tube — a container
  24. patient — a sick person

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