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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: bowl · chair · patient · fall · pitcher · ruler · ground · coach

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. fall — the season
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. ground — a position
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. ground — the earth
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. fall — to drop
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ground — crushed
  24. fall — to drop

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