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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: wave · field · kick · pitcher · rest · coach · roll · wind

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. field — for sport
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. kick — in football
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — a list
  14. field — farmland
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. field — a subject
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — what's left

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