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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: field · wind · hand · fine · calf · press · rash · coach

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. fine — all right
  4. press — a publisher
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — hasty
  9. hand — help
  10. wind — moving air
  11. press — newspapers
  12. field — for sport
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. field — a subject
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fine — high quality
  17. hand — in cards
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. field — farmland
  21. press — to push
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. coach — a trainer

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