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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 120 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: squash · cold · coach · club · bore · chest · pass · land

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. land — a country
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. squash — the sport
  6. club — a group
  7. bore — to drill
  8. club — for golf
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. squash — to crush
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. cold — not warm
  15. club — for dancing
  16. land — to come down
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. bore — to tire
  20. pass — a permit
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chest — of your body
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. land — ground

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