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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: stock · rule · pitcher · coach · deal · field · hide · swing

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. swing — to play on
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. field — farmland
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. field — a subject
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. field — for sport
  11. rule — a law
  12. deal — to handle
  13. stock — shares
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. swing — in golf
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. swing — music
  24. stock — goods

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