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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 120 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: scale · coach · swing · wind · mate · row · rush · patient

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. row — to paddle
  7. rush — hurry
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. scale — in music
  12. wind — moving air
  13. scale — size or range
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. mate — to breed
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mate — a partner
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — music
  23. swing — in golf
  24. mate — a friend

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