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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 116 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: bat · snap · coach · fan · row · staff · dip · swing

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. row — a line
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. bat — the animal
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. staff — a stick
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. dip — to sink
  14. row — to paddle
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. swing — in golf
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. snap — to click
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — music

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