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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: bat · sharp · land · face · suit · swing · kick · coach

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. swing — music
  3. land — a country
  4. land — to come down
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. suit — clothes
  9. swing — to play on
  10. suit — in cards
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — clever
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. suit — to fit
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. face — to point toward
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. swing — in golf
  20. land — ground
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. face — part of the head
  23. kick — in football
  24. sharp — exactly

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