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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
468
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: chest · field · club · firm · stick · pitcher · wound · coach

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. chest — of your body
  3. club — for dancing
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. firm — decided
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. field — farmland
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. club — for golf
  12. firm — a company
  13. club — a group
  14. firm — steady
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. field — for sport
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wound — an injury
  22. field — a subject
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. chest — a box

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