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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.

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: rest · coach · arm · chair · game · trunk · squash · net

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. game — wild animals
  3. chair — a leader
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. net — in sport
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. net — after costs
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. game — a match
  13. rest — a break
  14. squash — the sport
  15. net — for catching
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. squash — to crush
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — what's left

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