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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
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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: chip · squash · shower · branch · march · coach · swing · deal

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. swing — in golf
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. chip — to eat
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. march — music
  9. deal — to handle
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. swing — music
  12. march — the month
  13. squash — the sport
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. chip — for betting
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. shower — to wash
  18. squash — to crush
  19. shower — rain
  20. march — the month
  21. branch — a division
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. swing — to play on

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