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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: swing · plane · rush · face · field · club · tear · staff

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. swing — in golf
  3. swing — music
  4. plane — a tool
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. club — a group
  7. staff — a stick
  8. face — to confront
  9. club — for golf
  10. field — a subject
  11. club — for dancing
  12. face — to point toward
  13. tear — to rip
  14. rush — hurry
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. field — for sport
  17. tear — from crying
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. tear — from crying
  20. swing — to play on
  21. staff — employees
  22. field — farmland
  23. staff — employees
  24. face — part of the head

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