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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: board · coach · land · capital · plane · tube · pitcher · field

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. tube — the underground
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. capital — money
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. plane — a tool
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. field — farmland
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. land — ground
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. land — to come down
  14. board — a committee
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. land — a country
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. capital — a city
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. board — to get on
  22. tube — a container
  23. field — for sport
  24. coach — a trainer

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