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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fine · season · chip · branch · chest · coach · wound · cold

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. season — in sport
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. branch — a division
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chest — of your body
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. fine — all right
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. chip — to eat
  12. fine — high quality
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cold — not warm
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. chest — a box
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. season — of the year
  19. wound — an injury
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. cold — an illness
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. chip — for betting

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