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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: coach · chair · tear · pop · suit · ground · bound · march

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. pop — to visit
  5. ground — crushed
  6. pop — music
  7. suit — to fit
  8. suit — clothes
  9. bound — obliged
  10. pop — soda
  11. march — music
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. bound — certain
  14. ground — the earth
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. tear — from crying
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. suit — in cards
  19. ground — a position
  20. tear — from crying
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. march — the month
  23. march — the month
  24. tear — to rip

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