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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: swing · date · press · rest · coach · degree · court · mate

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. press — newspapers
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mate — a friend
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. degree — temperature
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. mate — to breed
  10. press — a publisher
  11. court — of a king
  12. rest — what's left
  13. press — to push
  14. court — of law
  15. swing — music
  16. degree — an amount
  17. rest — a break
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. date — the fruit
  20. rest — what's left
  21. court — for sport
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. degree — from a university

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