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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: season · capital · straw · tear · lean · coach · toast · last

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. season — in sport
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. capital — money
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. season — of the year
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — to bend
  10. tear — to rip
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. last — to go on
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. last — final
  18. last — finally
  19. toast — bread
  20. tear — from crying
  21. lean — thin
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. capital — a city

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