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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: field · mug · leaves · key · swing · deal · coach · kid

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. key — in music
  4. mug — a face
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — to tease
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. field — a subject
  10. mug — a cup
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. swing — to play on
  13. field — farmland
  14. deal — to handle
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. mug — to rob
  17. swing — in golf
  18. key — for a lock
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. swing — music
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. key — the most important part
  24. field — for sport

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