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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.

Make a worksheet

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: march · chest · cap · coach · club · mug · lash · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  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. pitcher — a jug
  2. club — a group
  3. mug — to rob
  4. chest — of your body
  5. march — music
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. club — for golf
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. club — for dancing
  11. cap — a hat
  12. chest — a box
  13. cap — a lid
  14. mug — a cup
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. march — the month
  19. cap — of ice
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. march — the month
  22. chest — of your body
  23. mug — a face
  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