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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: coach · press · chair · branch · toast · rule · lie · field

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. chair — a leader
  4. branch — a division
  5. rule — a law
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. press — a publisher
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. toast — bread
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. rule — government
  19. press — to push
  20. field — for sport
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. field — farmland
  23. press — newspapers
  24. field — a subject

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