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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: game · deal · last · coach · face · mug · hide · straw

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. mug — to rob
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. game — wild animals
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. mug — a face
  9. game — a match
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. mug — a cup
  12. last — to go on
  13. face — part of the head
  14. deal — to handle
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. face — to point toward
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. face — to confront
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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