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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 · bear · wind · ground · coach · staff · key · hand

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. hand — help
  3. wind — moving air
  4. swing — to play on
  5. ground — crushed
  6. swing — music
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — the earth
  10. key — for a lock
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. staff — employees
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bear — the animal
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bear — the animal
  19. swing — in golf
  20. staff — a stick
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. staff — employees
  23. hand — in cards
  24. key — the most important part

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