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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 · field · hand · cap · coach · cold · fall · mug

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. fall — the season
  3. cold — an illness
  4. mug — a cup
  5. cap — of ice
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. stock — goods
  8. hand — help
  9. field — for sport
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mug — to rob
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. fall — to drop
  14. field — farmland
  15. hand — in cards
  16. mug — a face
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cap — a hat
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stock — shares
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. fall — to drop
  24. field — a subject

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