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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.

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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: field · file · coach · branch · swing · land · cabinet · leaves

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — ground
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. field — farmland
  8. land — a country
  9. swing — in golf
  10. swing — music
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. swing — to play on
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — a division
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a line of people
  17. field — a subject
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. field — for sport
  24. file — a tool

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