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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 120 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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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: court · swing · kid · drill · chair · ruler · coach · fall

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. court — of a king
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. court — of law
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. drill — the tool
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. fall — the season
  13. swing — to play on
  14. kid — to tease
  15. swing — in golf
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. swing — music
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. court — for sport
  20. drill — a practice
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. drill — army training
  24. chair — a leader

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