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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: hide · snap · bat · lean · last · coach · rule · swing

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. swing — in golf
  6. snap — to click
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. lean — thin
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. lean — to bend
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. swing — music
  14. bat — the animal
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. last — final
  17. swing — to play on
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. last — to go on
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. rule — government
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. rule — a law

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