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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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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: perch · deal · chair · coach · court · root · file · race

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. race — the arms race
  3. chair — a leader
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. deal — to handle
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — a contest
  12. perch — the fish
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. file — a document
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. root — of a plant
  17. court — of law
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. root — of a word
  24. root — the cause

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