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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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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: bay · capital · racket · game · rash · chair · cell · coach

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — a phone
  7. rash — a series
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. chair — a leader
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. cell — in biology
  13. capital — money
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. game — a match
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. rash — hasty
  21. capital — a city
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. coach — a trainer

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