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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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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: lash · pop · stock · staff · coach · net · capital · chair

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. chair — a leader
  6. pop — music
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. staff — a stick
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. stock — goods
  13. net — in sport
  14. stock — shares
  15. capital — a city
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. net — for catching
  18. staff — employees
  19. capital — money
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pop — soda
  23. staff — employees
  24. lash — to lash out

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