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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 116 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: key · patient · swing · trunk · pitch · cabinet · tear · hand

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. swing — in golf
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. swing — to play on
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. key — in music
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. pitch — completely
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. key — for a lock
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. key — the most important part
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — in cards
  24. swing — music

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