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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: drill · field · tear · band · coach · suit · pitch · hand

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. hand — in cards
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. suit — to fit
  6. field — for sport
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. suit — in cards
  9. band — a music group
  10. tear — to rip
  11. pitch — completely
  12. drill — a practice
  13. suit — clothes
  14. field — a subject
  15. drill — army training
  16. hand — help
  17. band — a ring
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. field — farmland
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — from crying
  24. hand — part of the body

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