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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. field — for sport
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. field — a subject
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. swing — music
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. mine — for digging
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. bark — to shout
  18. board — a committee
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. swing — to play on
  22. board — to get on
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. field — farmland

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