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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: staff · wake · club · lean · coach · lie · bass · content

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. staff — employees
  3. wake — a trail
  4. staff — employees
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. content — happy
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. lean — thin
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for golf
  13. staff — a stick
  14. bass — the fish
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. content — the amount
  17. club — for dancing
  18. lean — to bend
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bass — low music

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