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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 116 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: hide · game · stem · bowl · rock · chair · coach · kid

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. game — wild animals
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — a leader
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. game — a match
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. rock — a stone
  17. kid — to tease
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. rock — music
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. kid — child
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. stem — to come from

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