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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: swing · root · drill · coach · game · row · capital · track

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. root — of a plant
  3. game — wild animals
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — a match
  6. drill — a practice
  7. track — a path
  8. row — to paddle
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. swing — to play on
  12. root — the cause
  13. drill — army training
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. capital — money
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. drill — the tool
  19. track — a song
  20. root — of a word
  21. row — a line
  22. track — to keep track
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — a city

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