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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: cell · last · field · racket · coach · board · wake · straw

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. field — farmland
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. cell — a phone
  6. wake — a trail
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. field — for sport
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. field — a subject
  13. board — a committee
  14. cell — in biology
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. last — to go on
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. board — to get on
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. last — finally
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. cell — in a prison

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