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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: swing · bear · pitch · coach · kick · file

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. bear — the animal
  3. pitch — completely
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bear — the animal
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a tool
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. swing — music
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. file — a document
  18. coach — pulled by horses

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