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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: sharp · capital · game · cabinet · coach · hide · field · bark

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. bark — to shout
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. game — a match
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. capital — money
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. game — wild animals
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. field — a subject
  18. capital — a city
  19. sharp — clever
  20. field — farmland
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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