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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: hide · mate · hand · craft · pound · swing · fork · coach

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. hand — in cards
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. craft — boats
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. swing — music
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — help
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. swing — in golf
  13. craft — a skill
  14. mate — to breed
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. mate — a friend
  17. swing — to play on
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. fork — in a road
  21. pound — a weight
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. mate — a partner

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