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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: coach · racket · wound · dip · deal · tear · spring · court

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. dip — to sink
  3. tear — from crying
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. tear — to rip
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. spring — of water
  13. court — of a king
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. spring — the season
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. tear — from crying
  18. wound — an injury
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. court — of law
  21. wound — an injury
  22. court — for sport
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. deal — to handle

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