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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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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: coach · swing · squash · pound · hide · rest · game · wind

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. game — wild animals
  5. squash — to crush
  6. rest — a break
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. swing — music
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. squash — the sport
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. pound — a weight
  15. game — a match
  16. rest — what's left
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. rest — what's left
  19. swing — in golf
  20. swing — to play on
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. wind — moving air
  24. squash — the vegetable

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