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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: chest · temple · coach · roll · scale · pop · can · clip

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. clip — to cut
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. clip — for paper
  6. chest — of your body
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. can — to be able to
  10. can — a tin
  11. roll — a cake
  12. pop — to visit
  13. chest — of your body
  14. scale — size or range
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. can — a tin
  17. clip — a video
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. roll — a list
  20. pop — soda
  21. scale — in music
  22. chest — a box
  23. pop — music
  24. coach — a trainer

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