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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 120 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: mate · coach · swing · spring · game · mug · field · bark

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. mate — to breed
  3. mug — a cup
  4. game — wild animals
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. mug — to rob
  7. game — a match
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — music
  10. mate — a friend
  11. mate — a partner
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spring — of water
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. mug — a face
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — a subject
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. field — farmland
  23. bark — to shout
  24. spring — the season

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