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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: bass · rule · hand · chair · coach · wave · branch · sharp

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. rule — government
  5. sharp — clever
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. chair — a leader
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. bass — low music
  19. bass — the fish
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. hand — help
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. rule — a law
  24. branch — a division

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