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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.

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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: coach · can · tube · rush · last · field · rule · game

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. can — to be able to
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. tube — a container
  6. field — a subject
  7. game — wild animals
  8. can — a tin
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. last — to go on
  12. game — a match
  13. rule — a law
  14. can — a tin
  15. rush — hurry
  16. last — final
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — for sport
  19. last — finally
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. tube — the underground
  22. rule — government
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. tube — in a tire

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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