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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 · chair · snap · wax · shower · rush · ground · coach

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. ground — crushed
  4. ground — a position
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. rush — hurry
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. shower — to wash
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. season — in sport
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. ground — the earth
  19. wax — to grow
  20. snap — to click
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. shower — rain
  24. season — of the year

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